It started in detention
by DawnForever101
Summary: Ash is an immature guy with no interest in school. Dawn is a nerd and he never cared about her. But when Ash needs a tutor to improve his grades, a little conversation during detention, tutoring lessons and more causes Ash to hopelessly fall in love with Dawn. Little did he know that being in love with Dawn would cause him to lose her forever. Pearlshipping!
1. Need a tutor

**Yes it's me again, with another pearlshipping one-shot. I actually came up with this idea a long while ago but I didn't really know when the perfect time would be to publish it.**

 **Ok warning: On certain occasions, you may 'aww' at this fanfic and you** _ **may**_ **cry. Not saying that you will, I'm not good at making emotional stories.**

 **Also…parts of this story will be based upon A Walk to Remember, both the movie and the book. If you don't know what I'm talking about, go watch the movie, read the book and come back to this. Or don't, whatever, I ain't forcing nobody.**

 **One more thing: this is based on Ash's POV.**

 ***DawnForever101 tries to explain the disclaimer, but she is too lazy to do so***

* * *

I tried to stifle my laughter, or rather _we_ tried to stifle our laughter. Gary, Drew and I had just risked our lives by playing a sick prank on our Math teacher, Mr. Doof-for-brains. We knew that we would probably regret the action later on, but it was so worth it. The two boys and I waited in anticipation for Mr. Doof-for-brains to enter the classroom. He was a very strict teacher, always giving detentions and insulting students for no particular reason. His very demanding and strict behaviour agonized me to the very least and as a result, we had done various demeaning pranks on this goof of a teacher. Drew, Gary and I were always part of the pranks and sometimes we'd get caught and sometimes we'd barely escape alive.

Gary and I practically knew each other since we were toddlers and being sixteen now, we were practically bros with different mothers. We were both from Pallet Town in the Kanto region and grew up together. Gary was quite the ladies charmer and always boasted to everyone about his good looks. He had spiky, brown hair that almost never seemed to be combed, brown eyes and he was quite tall for his age, standing at almost 6 feet. He had a toned body, he wasn't that muscular but his impressive body was caught by all the ladies.

Drew and I had met each other right around during middle school and he eventually joined Gary and I, to become really close mates. Drew was quite the ladies charmer as well, except over the past few years, everyone seemed to be noticing his undying love for May Maple, a girl that we knew from middle school as well. Unfortunately, he could never muster up the courage to reveal his feelings about May to anybody, but he also couldn't deny it. Drew was arrogant and egoistical, similar to Gary but the one thing he always seemed to admire about himself was his unique chartreuse green hair.

The anticipation slowly increased when footsteps were heard and the door handle opened slightly. Drew, Gary and I had matching grins on our faces when Mr. Doof-for-brains entered inside, "Good morning-eaahhh!"

The class erupted into laughter and several students were pointing in laughing at Mr. Doof-for-brain's flushed face. He was covered in a pile of brown, sticky mud, some earthworms crawling and some weeks old yogurt and expired milk. I stole glances at Gary, who was laughing his ass off and at Drew, who was laughing so hard that it looked like it hurt.

He slowly gritted his teeth in anger as he proceeded to wipe off some of the mud that had spread onto his face and his nostrils flared in anger, "This isn't funny! Stop laughing at once!" He commanded, yelling at us.

However, we still continued erupting in laughter. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" At that point, most of the students including me, stopped laughing hysterically immediately, but I could still hear chuckles from others.

"Alright," He narrowed his eyes, "Who did this?"

Everyone remained in silence and nobody dared to speak up. I silently smirked to myself and mentally thanked my classmates for not ratting us out since they were all witnesses to the prank.

"Fine, be that way…if no one speaks up, I'm making sure that the whole class is suspended." He threatened with his cold and powerful voice.

"Lighten up, teach. It was just a prank." One of the students told him.

"Quiet, Daniel! You're not the one covered in earthworms and reeking of mud and expired milk!" He told him and then he turned to us again, "If nobody wants to share how this happened, I'll make sure you get expelled. _All_ of you."

The looks on Drew's and Gary's faces were probably matching mines, because our cheeks were heating. We certainly didn't know we went to those types of extremes. Could he even expel us for a harmless prank?

Our world came crumbling apart when a hand was raised into the air. Shit, no!

Damn it, of course it was her.

The nerd.

"I know who committed this crime on you, Mr. Bailey." Crime? What the crap?

"Then please reveal," He told her, adjusting his glasses.

My eyes narrowed at her but she just ignored my intimidating stare and she proceeded to rat the three of us out, "It was Ash, Gary and Drew. They're the reason why you're covered in mud." She said, adjusting her glasses as she closed her chemistry textbook.

 _Bloody hell!_

"Hm," He muttered, staring at the three of us, "Why am I not surprised?" He said, a bit of amusement in his voice. "Well, looks like you'll be spending long, good afternoons in detention for the next three weeks."

The three of us groaned in exhaustion and I looked back to see Dawn buried in her textbook, not paying attention to the matter at hand. Dawn Berlitz.

Dawn was described as the geek or the nerd of the entire school. She was always known for getting perfect scores on her tests and assignments and an extremely impressive GPA. She always kept her unique blue hair tied in a bun and she wore glasses upon her blue eyes. She was a loner; she'd always just be found alone reading in the library or writing something in her blue notebook. She was a plain and ordinary girl; she wore no makeup at all. She wasn't extremely beautiful but she wasn't hideous either.

"You should be thankful I'm not suspending you little twerps!" Mr Doof-for-brains exclaimed in anger. "I'll be right back; I have to wash this stuff off from my face." He muttered in annoyance as he exited the classroom.

The three of us looked at Dawn in anger; however she paid no attention to us as she continued writing in a little blue notebook that was placed on her desk. I walked over and sat in a vacant seat next to her.

"What the bloody hell is your problem?!" I exclaimed and she glanced at me, adjusting her glasses and giving me a 'Are you really talking to me' look.

"Yeah," Gary joined in, "You ratted us out. You never do that!" He added as he crossed his arms.

"Can't believe that the nerd would actually rat us out," Drew spoke under his breath.

Dawn exhaled before glancing at Drew, Gary and finally at me, "For your previous question, I do not have a problem. And the reason I reported to Mr. Bailey about your tomfoolery is because you all need to realize the importance of responsibility. You three need to be civil." She said with a straight face.

Drew, Gary and I raised our eyebrows and after a few seconds, Dawn flinched because we started to laugh at what she just said. "Responsibility?" Drew exclaimed, laughing.

"Civil?" I said, between laughter.

"Yeah, right," Gary remarked sarcastically while chuckling.

I stopped laughing when I noticed Dawn still keeping a bored expression, "Oh, you were serious." I said and the others stopped laughing.

"I am very serious. This is a serious matter. You three will have to mend your immature ways if you want to progress in life." She continued until the bell rang, signalling for the next period.

While she was closing her textbooks and packing her backpack, Drew said, "Dawn, cuz of you, we have to be in detention for _three_ weeks." He complained.

"Yes, however, that punishment is far too minute for the crime that you three committed. In other words, it's better if you remain thankful." She stated while slinging her backpack across her shoulders.

Gary raised an eyebrow, "Crime? It was just a harmless prank…" He said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, you're acting as if we murdered someone," I said, smiling a bit at Dawn's exaggerating.

And again, she always had to bring up a point, "Research has proven that immature students who aren't performing academically well drop out of school and engage themselves in negative offenses such as gangs, rape and indeed murder to sustain them-

"Yeah, yeah, we don't have time for an essay." I said, rolling my eyes at her and looked at the guys, "Come on, let's head to the next class before the nerd starts another essay about poverty or something." I said while walking away, with Drew and Gary laughing along with me.

"Man that girl is annoying, it's like she's not even human!" Gary exclaimed.

"I know right. Civil? Who says these kinds of things?" Drew laughed, mocking Dawn.

"Don't forget that we committed a crime." I said, putting air quotes around the word 'crime' and the three of us laughed, as we made our way into our next period: Chemistry.

Chemistry was not one of my strongest subjects in school, I usually have to rely on cheat notes to pass the class, or majority of the classes for that matter. And these two idiots beside me weren't really helpful either, because they generally sucked at school in general. The only reason we happened to be barely passing these classes is because we're extremely talented with the concept of cheating.

"Ash, may I speak to you for a few minutes?" Ms. Morgan asked after the class was over.

I looked over to my right, where Drew and Gary previously were, noticing that they ditched me, "Assholes." I mumbled.

"Excuse me?"

My head whipped towards her and I realized she may have heard that, "Nothing," I said, trying to cover it up. I walked up to the desk.

"What'd you wanna talk to me about?" I said coolly as I relaxed against a chair.

"Your grades." She said as she looked at me in the eyes. "How do I put this?" She asked herself. "They're not…good," She finished.

"Yeah, I know have a couple of F's and D's-" I started but she cut me off.

"No, you have a _lot_ of F's and you only managed to get two D's. You need to start doing better in this class, otherwise you'll fail." She told me and I gulped. Damn.

"What can I do?" I asked her.

"You can submit two projects to me and do a makeup test." She said and I groaned.

"But…that's a lot of work!" I exclaimed.

"Well, this wouldn't happen if you had been doing well in Chemistry. If you want to pass, I suggest you do it." She said, while opening some drawers, probably looking for a file.

I groaned at the thought of doing more work to pass this class and I realized that this probably wasn't the only subject in school that I needed to some extra work for.

"I also recommend that you get a tutor." She said, looking at the file.

"Tutor?" I said as if it were poison.

"Yes and from this file…the person who's been performing the best academically is...oh, right. Dawn Berlitz."

I dismissed the thought immediately, "No way. She's a nerd, there's no way that she'll help me out." I couldn't bear Dawn in class earlier and the thought of her being my tutor just sickened me.

"Well, Ash, she'll be able to help you out. I suggest you take my advice." She said, putting back the file in the drawer.

I rolled my eyes, "Okay, whatever." And with that she nodded her head and I headed out of class.

"Now would you two son of a bitches tell me why you practically ditched me earlier?" I said, as I brought up a tray with hot dogs and some eggs on one of the cafeteria table.

"We didn't ditch you, man." Drew said, "We were just trying to ditch Ms. Morgan."

"Yeah, she's boring as fuck. She can't teach shit," Gary said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah. By the way, we need to make a plan to ditch detention, I ain't staying in there for two hours!" I exclaimed, taking a bite from my hot dog.

"Right, like I wanna stay in there for two hours too." Gary said sarcastically and then took a sip from his water bottle.

"I don't think we can. Because Mr. Rowan will be watching and we know better than to mess with him." Drew stated and I groaned.

"Damn, you're right! Last time we messed with him, it wasn't pretty." I said, recalling the time when the three of us put glue on his teacher's desk. When he had found out that it was the three of us who had pulled the prank, he had banned us from entering his class for at least two months and that hurt our grades tremendously…not that the three of us really cared.

"Yeah. Still worth it though." Gary smirked at the memory.

"Guess we have to sit through detention for three weeks then," Drew sighed irritably.

I sighed, "Yeah."

When the bell rang, signalling the end of last period, it was time for the three of us to trudge in detention. We grimaced at the thought, but I made a mental note to just deal with it and maybe sleep through it for a while. As we entered, I saw Mr. Rowan writing on the chalkboard. He eyed the three of us.

"Of course. You three again," He said, turning to face us. "You know the rules. No talking or any kind of conversation at all!" He raised his voice a bit, pointing to the words 'NO TALKING' on the chalkboard. I rolled my eyes and sat down on the chair, looking at the clock.

 _Tick tock…tick tock…tick tock…_

Can't this thing go any faster?!

I eyed around and noticed Drew playing with a pencil and Gary staring outside the window. I decided to lay my head against the desk, closing my eyes in the process to pass the time. I didn't even know when I had drifted off to sleep until I heard Mr. Rowan's powerful voice.

"MR. KETCHUM!"

"Wha-Ahhh!" I exclaimed as I fell off my chair, onto the floor, causing Drew and Gary to start laughing their asses off at me. I gave them a death glare and they seemed to shut up at that.

"No sleeping in detention!" He said, hitting a ruler against the desk, causing me to flinch.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms in annoyance. I glanced at the clock again at only five minutes had passed. I groaned internally and decided to just doodle in one of my notebooks. After drawing some hilarious and horrible drawings of what I think was a tiger and a basketball, I heard the door open. I didn't look up from my drawing though, but when I took a glance and recognized that blue hair, I was extremely shocked.

Dawn Berlitz was sitting in the back of the classroom, writing something in her notebook. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. I looked over at Gary and Drew and they seemed to be surprised as well. Dawn had never gotten a detention in her entire life. We were practically looking back and forth at each other as if we were saying 'Is Dawn Berlitz, the nerd of the school, actually in detention?'.

Ten minutes had passed and I decided to continue doodling, but still with confused thoughts on why the nerd was in detention. After two hours, I had a couple goofy drawings all over my notebook and when I looked back at Dawn, she was still writing in her blue notebook, adjusting her glasses. I suddenly became curious and wondered what she kept writing in that blue notebook.

'Must be some sort of diary.' I thought. 'Wait, do nerds have diaries?' I added as an afterthought.

"Alright. Time's up. You're free to leave." Mr. Rowan said and I sighed a breath of relief.

"Freeedoooom!" Gary exclaimed as he practically ran outside of the class, earning a shake of disapproval from Mr. Rowan.

He took the words right out of my mouth. I looked back again and noticed Dawn placing her blue notebook back in her backpack as she was starting to head out of the classroom. Before I could talk to her, Drew looked at me, "Is today opposite day or something?" Drew said and I chuckled.

"Maybe. I intend to find out," I said.

"Okay, well I'll seeya tomorrow, I'm really hungry." He said and I nodded.

I eyed around for Dawn and noticed her walking down the halls, "Hey Dawn! Wait up!" I said and she looked back at me, with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes?"

I cleared my throat, licking my lips, "Why were you in detention earlier? You _never_ do anything bad." I said and she sighed.

"I know it was quite peculiar to find me in detention, however it was the first and last time I will be found there." She said as she continued walking.

I walked along with her, "What did you do? Cheat? Skip class? Play a prank on a teacher?"

She looked at me with curiosity and I could see her crack a smile. She adjusted her glasses before facing me, shaking her head, "No. I accidentally slammed the locker loudly today and while it was an accident, the principal didn't believe my words."

I stared at her with a look of disbelief, "That's it?! You're kidding right?!"

"No. I never…kid." She said as if 'kid' was a new word in her vocabulary. I rolled my eyes.

"Look, I need some help." I said and she eyed me with curiosity again.

"Ash Ketchum is asking me for help?" She said, her tone clearly surprised.

I shrugged, "Yeah. I've been flunking my classes and I need some help to make up for my grades. Would you be willing to tutor me?" I asked.

"Why should I lend you my assistance? After all, I've been nothing but teased and made fun of, especially from the three of you." She said, with a questioning look.

I groaned a bit before looking at her, "Okay. Fine, I agree that we may have insulted you. But I really need to improve my grades and you're the nerd, so you can help me."

She sighed in exhaustion, "You know nothing about me, Ash. Nobody does." She said, looking to the side.

I sighed, ignoring her comment, "Please. I really need your help." She looked at me again and after a while of hesitating, she finally gave in.

"Fine." She said and I smiled, "However, I want something in return." She said.

I raised an eyebrow, "Okay, what is it?"

"I need you to assist my mother this Saturday afternoon in a cookie sale." She said and I burst out laughing.

"Yeah, not gonna happen." I said and she nodded her head.

"Okay, glad we had this talk," She said as she began walking away from me. I sighed irritably and then walked up to her. I can't believe that I was willing to do this.

"Okay. I'll help your mom with her cookies." I said irritably. "Why can't you do it?"

She remained silent for a while and hesitated before speaking, "I have…other important tasks to take care of."

"Riiiiight," I exclaimed sarcastically but she just ignored. "So when are we going to start?"

"Will tomorrow at six be an appropriate time?"

I rolled my eyes at her nerdy behaviour, "Sure." I shrugged, "I'll be at your place."

"Oh! I also have another condition." She said and I raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"You have to promise you won't fall in love with me." She said and I grinned maniacally at her words. Was she being serious?

I looked at her, still grinning, "That's not gonna happen,"

* * *

The next day at school, I was by the lockers with Drew and Gary and Gary was telling me about his grandfather, Mr. Samuel Oak. I had met Gary's grandpa when I was just three years old. He was a lively man, always joyous and so energetic and he often lit up the room. He was a successful researcher when he was young and he was very passionate about his job. Apparently, his health had been deteriorating and Gary was devastated. He lived with his grandpa ever since he was eight; the same time around when his parents had passed away. He had been dependent on him for years, both financially and emotionally but Gary couldn't do that anymore.

"Yeah, gramps' blood pressure's beginning to increase," He said to us worriedly.

"Maybe the work pressure's getting to him," Drew commented, shrugging.

"Don't worry, man," I tapped his shoulder, "He'll be fine," I said and he smiled, giving me a fist bump.

"Thanks, Ashy boy," He smirked.

Gary developed that nickname when we were little toddlers and he picked it up from my mom who used to call me that when I was a toddler. As we grew up, he kept that nickname and continued teasing me about it.

"Stop calling me that!" I retorted, childishly.

I pouted while Drew and Gary were just laughing their asses off and I rolled my eyes, thinking what dickheads I have for friends. Ignoring them, I took out my books from my locker when I noticed Dawn approaching me. Today, she was wearing a dark grey long-sleeved blouse with a long black flowing skirt and some simple sandals. As usual, she kept her blue hair in a tight bun and glasses in front of her blue eyes.

"Ash, I just wanted to confirm our meeting tonight," She spoke, cocking her head slightly to me.

I was about to reply when I noticed Drew and Gary raise their eyebrows in confusion, as if they were saying 'Is this nerd really gonna meet you tonight'. Therefore, I decided to be smug and said, "Pshh, in your dreams." I slightly smirked and Dawn slowly nodded her head and walked away, a frown on her face. Drew and Gary were laughing at my comeback, however I couldn't help but feel guilty about it. And I had no idea why.

The rest of the school day passed and I had noticed Dawn ignoring me all day. She wouldn't even glance at my direction. Wait, why should I give two damns if she does? I've never cared about Dawn and I never will. She was just a nerd.

Shaking my thoughts away, I headed home and was about to knock on the door when the door abruptly swing open, revealing my mom. My mom smiled at me and she gave me a warm hug, once which I return with ease to her. She let go and smiled.

"How was your day, dear?" She asked as I entered inside, practically throwing my backpack on the couch.

I shrugged, "The same," I said, heading for the fridge.

"Well," my mom started, "I got some calls from the school today," she said and I groaned, knowing that this was bad, "And I've come to know that you pulled another prank?!"

I smiled creepily and said, "Yeah," I said proudly but my mom was giving me a look of disapproval.

"Honey, this has got to stop. You need to change and be more focused. You're going to be seventeen soon and soon these kinds of behaviours aren't going to work our for you." She said, while putting her hands on her hips.

I rolled my eyes, "Mom, please, I don't want to grow up and be mature. It's...boring. Being a teen is much more fun. I mean, who wants to wake up everyday and work?" I said rhetorically.

She sighed, "I'm not asking you to change entirely. Life is not about jokes, Ash. It's time to get serious. I know nobody wants to grow up; I didn't, but it's an inevitable part of life itself." She said as she turned on her heel and away from me, but not before looking at me, "And I think I'd start with getting my grades up. Your teacher told me you weren't performing well at school either," She said before leaving the kitchen.

I groaned, partially because she was right in a way and also because I was fed up with her constant lectures. I drank some water before walking across the hall, noticing my backpack. I flashbacked during when I had insulted Dawn earlier in school, but I shook my thoughts away, trying not to feel guilty. Soon, I took my backpack with me and headed outside to my car to go to Dawn's place. On the way, I had texted my mom that I was going to a friend's place, I didn't tell her the truth because I didn't want her to know that I was taking her advice.

I parked in Dawn's driveway and headed up to her porch, knocking on the white door. I had become familiar where Dawn lived when I was about nine years old, when she was a new student back then. It was pretty funny now that I looked back at the memory, because I had never visited Dawn and look at me now, about to enter Dawn's place of residence for the first time ever.

Soon enough, the door opened to reveal Dawn, giving me a stern expression through her glasses. Before I could greet her, she quickly slammed the door shut, making me flinch in the process. I groaned a little before knocking on the door, "Come on, Dawn, open the door! Open up!" I yelled, while knocking.

Thankfully, she did open and she walked outside, crossing her arms and said, "What do you want?"

I scratched my auburn hair sheepishly, "Well, I was hoping that you could tutor me for a while,"

She slowly nodded her head, "Yes, but in secret, correct? As secret friends?" She narrowed her eyes.

I smiled, perking up, "Exactly. Exactly, it's like you read my mind," I said and she smiled a bit.

"Great, well perhaps you can read mine," She said as the smile slowly decreased and she was now giving me a killer look.

I was at a loss for words and then she turned around to go back inside, "Dawn, I-"

"Ash, I'll be honest. I thought I saw something in you. I had the assumption that you had potential. However, I was very wrong." She said as she closed the door, but I placed my foot in between to prevent her from closing it. She eyed me in curiosity.

"I-I'm sorry," I said, looking away from her.

She raised her eyebrows, a bit confused, "And what are you sorry for?"

"Being a jerk. Look, I really want to pass. And..I really need your help, so please..." I said, biting my lip. She crossed her arms, hesitating for a while as she began to contemplate.

"Okay," She breathed, "Come in," She said and I slightly smiled as I entered.

* * *

"Have you gotten the concept?"

"No...this shit is fuckin' hard," I retorted.

We had started my tutoring lesson an hour ago and Dawn was trying to explain a few topics in Chemistry, but I couldn't really grasp anything what Dawn was saying because she made it sound extremely complicated.

"Okay, fine I shall explain once more. You see, concentration refers to the amount of solute that is dissolved in a solvent. Once the solute and solvent is identified in a solution, the concentration is ready to be determined. Concentration-"

"Wait, wait, slow down! First, what's a solute and a solvent?" I asked.

She sighed in exasperation, "I believed I had explained those a few times," She said, adjusting her glasses.

"Well, please explain it again and this time make it simple," I said, pleading. She sighed again.

"This topic in Chemistry is quite simple in itself; I'm quite perplexed with your lack of understanding in this." She said and I rolled my eyes.

"Easy for you to say. I'm not a nerd like you," I said.

"Fine, I shall explain again and I will attempt to keep it simple," She said, "First a solute and solvent are the two components of a solution. A solvent is a substance that dissolves the solute. And the solute is the substance being dissolved." She continued and added, "I will give an example," She stated as she poured some water from a jug into a glass. I watched in curiosity as she walked into the kitchen rummaging through some closets before she approached me with what looked like some salt. She grabbed a spoonful and dipped it into the glass of water. "Now, as you notice salt and water mix easily together. When salt is dissolved in water, it changes from solid to liquid. While the water remains as liquid. Hence, the salt is the solute and water is the solvent." She finished.

"Ohh..." I nodded in understanding and she smiled satisfactorily.

"Excellent! Your key to understand is visual concepts."

"Come again?" I raised an eyebrow.

"You understand when you see. You need to see in order to understand," She said in simpler words.

"You know, I think you're right." I said, smiling, "I understood the concept much better when you were showing me the water and salt solution,"

"Yes, now we just need to keep that in mind for other topics." She said as she continued flipping through the Chemistry books.

* * *

Next week at school, I had gotten my test results back from a recent Chemistry test and a few projects and I was very pleased. I immediately went up to the school library, most likely where Dawn would be and much to my liking, she was there writing in her blue notebook once again. I came inside and sat next to her and she widened her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, her voice full of shock.

"I want to thank you," I said and she raised an eyebrow, "Because of you, I have three A's now." I smiled as I handed her the test papers for her to glance on, "I'm sure I would have failed if it weren't for you,"

She smiled, adjusting her glasses, "Ash, this was a result of your hard work. You put in the effort and the results were sweet in the end. In conclusion, you deserve it." She said, while making a few writings in her notebook.

I shook my head, "No, its because of you. You were the one who tutored me and made me understand. That's why I was able to get these grades."

She seemed speechless at that and she brushed her hair with her fingers and I could see her cheeks turn pink a little, "You're welcome..." She said softly.

"Look," I started, "I know I've not been the best person. But...I can change." She looked at me, her eyes widening, "I hope you can forget everything. Friends?" I said, holding out a hand.

She stared at my hand in curiosity and then looked at me before her lips curved into a small smile. She took my hand in hers, "Friends." I smiled as she shook my hand. "This seems...weird."

"Weird?" I said in confusion.

"Yes, weird." She nodded, "Until you approached me for help, I've never had someone other than my mother to confide in. I've never had anybody whom I can talk to on a friendly basis." She said, as she twirled her pen between her fingers. "I've been labelled as a nerd throughout high school and nobody has really gotten to know who I really am."

"Well," I started, "You _are_ a nerd." I smirked and she smiled at my joke, "But I realize where you're coming from. That's why I offered myself as a friend," I said.

"Well, thank you." She nodded, smiling. "Your friendship is appreciated."

Before I could say anything, a girl came up towards us. I recognized that pink hair; it was Ursula, the queen bitch of the school. She was top cheerleader and she was often very snobbish and rude to almost everybody in the entire school. She was currently wearing her cheerleading outfit.

"Hey nerd," She spat, "Do my math homework for me," She said, practically throwing some papers at her face, making Dawn's glasses stumble and fall from her face. I narrowed my eyes at her as I picked up her glasses and handed it to Dawn, but not before noticing something. It was her eyes. I wasn't sure what it was about her eyes, but now that the glasses were off, I noticed Dawn in a completely different light. She looked different without it; good different and her face was flawless. She wasn't perfect but she was no doubt pretty without her glasses.

"Thanks," She mouthed to me as she put her glasses back on and then eyed Ursula.

"Great, thanks so much nerd," She smirked and turned around. I looked at Dawn as if she had gone crazy. Why didn't she defend herself?

"Ursula!" I yelled and she turned to face me, "Dawn isn't your robot, okay? You can't take advantage of her like that."

She rolled her eyes, "Oh Ash, Dawn is perfectly fine with doing my homework. Besides, she's a nerd." She said. I saw Dawn's expression turn dark and I clenched my fists. I took the math papers and threw it back into her face.

"Do your own bloody homework and stop taking advantage of Dawn!" I spat and Ursula scoffed.

"Ugh, you're such an ass! Since when are you so defensive about Dawn? You've never even liked her!" Ursula retorted.

"Well, you're a huge bitch. Not only to her, but to everybody! And Dawn's my friend. So of course I'll defend her," I said back and she just crossed her arms in annoyance. I notice Dawn giving me a soft expression and I smiled, to which she returned.

"Whatever, I'm out," She said as she turned on her heel.

"Wait," I said and she turned back giving me killer look.

"What?" She gritted her teeth.

"Oh, nothing I just wanted to show you something," I said devilishly as I raised my middle finger making her gasp. She mentioned something about getting revenge, I wasn't really paying attention because I sat back with Dawn.

"Wow, Ash. Thank you...I appreciate it," She smiled shyly.

"You're welcome. You really should put your foot down and defend yourself, you know." I stated matter-of-factly.

"You're probably right, but I help most people to make my life much more worthwhile to live." She said absentmindedly.

"What do you mean by that?" I raised an eyebrow.

She sighed heavily, "It's not important." She gave me a light smile.

"Okay...if you say so." I said.

* * *

"Dude, wanna hang out Saturday afternoon?" Drew asked me after school.

"Nah, I can't. I'm having another tutoring lesson with Dawn," I said and Drew scrunched his eyebrows in confusion.

"Dude, but this new movie came out. You've gotta come!" He exclaimed, his eyes popping with excitement.

"I told you I can't. I still need some lessons with Dawn and I have to improve my grades if I want to get into a good college," I said.

Drew grew suspicious, "Since when have you been concerned about getting into college? Or getting good grades?"

"Since I realized that I have to change. Drew, I can't keep messing around with life. I have to stay focused." I said and Drew had his mouth opened.

"Oh..my...fuck...that nerd has changed you." He said, slowly, with a tone of shock.

"She hasn't changed me,"

"Yes, she has. Look at you. Before you started hanging out with the nerd, you hung out with us all the time. Now you don't even have time for us. What happened to our trio?" Drew said.

"Drew, look. You won't understand, but I'm tired of playing games, alright? Life isn't about games. And I'm going to do great things one day. So, while you stay around continuing to pull pranks and struggle to pass high school, I'll already be in college and probably finding a good job." I said and Drew's jaw dropped.

"Since when did you turn into a giant ass? Ash, come on we've been bros since forever," He said.

"As bros, you should be understanding me." I retorted.

Drew rolled his eyes, "I had a feeling this would happen. Fine, go ahead. Continue to hang with Dawn and forget about the two of us who's been with you since childhood," He said angrily as he stormed off.

I shook my head in disapproval wondering why I chose that dick of a brain to be my friend.

* * *

"So, have you understood?" Dawn asked as she pointed to a whiteboard. The whiteboard was filled with different scribbles and writings regarding math.

"Yeah, I think so," I nodded my head.

"Excellent, now to test...let's do a problem," She said as she uncapped a marker and began to write a random problem on the whiteboard. "Okay, solve that." She stated and I began to write the problem in my notebook. After about five minutes, I handed her the notebook for her to see and she smiled satisfactorily.

"Congratulations, Ash, the problem is correct." She said, grinning as she handed me back the notebook, "I have to admit, you're improving significantly since our first tutoring lesson."

"That's only because I've had the best tutor." I said sheepishly, pushing my hands in my pockets.

I could see her cheeks warm as it turned pink, "Thanks," She said shyly. "Would you like to take a break?" She asked hesitantly.

"Sure," I shrugged, "What've you got to eat?"

She smiled as she headed for the fridge and pulled out a box of pizza and some sodas, "It's pizza. Do you like?"

"Of course, who doesn't like pizza?" I said rhetorically as she grabbed a seat in the dining table and I did the same.

"Pizza haters?" She grinned and I laughed.

These past few weeks, I've grown closer with Dawn, not only in tutoring but our friendship had slowly developed. No one knew much about Dawn, but I've learned so much about her. She may not seem like it, but she was a great girl to engage a conversation with, she was pretty funny with her corny jokes, sweet, a bit clumsy and most importantly she was extremely smart. From looking at her, I guess one would say that she was just a plain and ordinary girl, but she was just shielded by her nerd look. Without her glasses, she looked extremely stunning and she was really beautiful, on the outside and inside.

"So...what have you always wanted to do in life?" I asked in between eating.

She raised her eyebrows, "Interesting question. Well, I've always wanted to be two places at once. I've wanted to see space and...I've always wanted to publish a book." She said, hesitating a bit at the last park.

"Wow...the first two seems kind of farfetched don't you think?"

She smiled, "But not impossible."

"The third one though...is that why you're constantly writing in that little notebook of yours?" I asked.

She passed a finger through her hair and nodded, "Yes. It's always been a dream of mines."

"Cool! I'd like to read it!" I said but she just shook her head.

"No," She immediately retorted, "You can't."

"Why not?"

"It's...private. I don't feel comfortable sharing it," She said, looking down.

"Dawn, you can tell me anything," I protested, "Don't you trust me?"

"I do," She said, "I just...don't want to hurt you."

"What? I don't understand."

"Ash...it's better if some things remain unknown. Please," She begged and her eyes was filled with mercy. I wondered what that meant. But I disregarded it for now.

"Alright. It's okay." I said and she smiled, continuing to devour her pizza.

She was confusing. But at the same time, I liked it. There was more to her than just a nerd, way more. As we sat there engaging in small talk, the thoughts kept lingering in my head. She was enlightening. She was inspirational. And she was starting to change me.

* * *

 **That's the first part! It was going to be a looooooong one shot but that's not possible considering this is already way too long. Please send me your thoughts with a review, I worked really hard on this, so I'll appreciate it very much.**

 **Oh and did I manage to make Dawn a nerd?**

 **Next part coming soon. How soon? I don't know but in the meanwhile, I'll see you guys next time.**


	2. New feelings

**Hey guys! I have to say that I got a lot of positive reviews the last chapter and I was very pleased. Now I don't want to burst my own bubble, but I think this is one of my best works since "Impression, Battle and Love." But that's just my opinion. Anyway, next part.**

 **Disclaimer: Ughh….screw that, you all know that I don't own Pokemon…**

* * *

 _Two weeks later..._

"Hey, Ash are you prepared for finals next week?" Dawn asked, as we were sitting together in the cafeteria. I glanced at Gary and Drew who were scowling at me while eating cafeteria food. Two weeks ago, our bond had been broken. They weren't supportive over the fact that I had become great friends with Dawn. I couldn't bear the fact that our trio had been broken, but I realized that Drew and Gary weren't my friends at all. Friends were supposed to encourage each other and lend each other support. When I looked at Dawn, I realized that Dawn was a better friend in these two weeks than Gary and Drew ever were in my childhood. She pushed me, brought me back up and ensured that I did my best.

"Yeah," I smiled, "I'm not too fond of exams but I do feel confident enough," I said, reaching for my hamburger and taking a bite out of it.

"That's perfect. Now I've devised some additional notes to assist you. It's very likely to ace the exams with these," She said, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement as she handed me some cards to me.

"Thanks," I said, picking up the cards, "Not for this...but for everything."

Her expression grew soft, "Ash, it was no problem. I genuinely assist people. I should be expressing my gratitude towards you," She stated, a bit shyly.

"Wait, what?" I asked, confused.

She nodded, "You're the first person who has ever become close to me. All these years, I've been neglected because I'm a nerd. I've been taunted, bullied and I was always just another face in the crowd. However, these two weeks have passed and those feelings I had all these years have faded away...because you got to know me better. You offered yourself as a friend and I'm very thankful."

I found myself speechless to her words. But I managed to muster up some courage to speak, with no sign of hesitation, "Dawn, you're more than just a nerd. Believe it or not, but you're one of the most intriguing persons I have ever met. You're eccentric; you may not be the most courageous person but I know that you're strong to ignore all those people who kept insulting you. You're kind, sweet, smart and to be honest...a great friend." I said and she parted her lips in slight surprise. She smiled shyly as she eyed the floor, blushing in embarrassment.

"And I wished that I would have realized that sooner," I continued and then she eyed me again, through her glasses. Before she could utter a word, the bell rang and she almost immediately stood up, taking her belongings with her. I smiled. Dawn wasn't a very self-confident girl, in fact she was rather timid at most situations. But I didn't find it abnormal. I found it quite pleasing to see and it was just something to embrace about her.

Before I could head into class, Gary quickly pushed me aside and I flinched when I found myself in the janitor's closet.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I exclaimed and Gary rolled his eyes, but kept a serious expression.

"We need to talk, Ash." He said, "And I thought it'd be best to talk in here. You know, since your new bestie is the nerd and you never leave her side now," He muttered sarcastically.

"Yeah, well why should I talk to you right after you insulted Dawn?" I retorted.

"Ash, are you hearing yourself?" He said, his voice raising a bit, "A few weeks ago, you were insulting Dawn and now...you're defending her. You hated her..." He said, trailing off.

"That was before I truly got to know her. Dawn isn't just a nerd; she's more than that. And I'm pretty sure that you'd agree if you were in my shoes,"

"She took you away from us! She broke the trio, Ash! Look at what she's doing to you." He said.

"Gary, I'm sorry. If you still can't respect the friendship that I have with Dawn, then you can just screw off," I said, rolling my eyes. "Besides, when have you two ever tried to help in life? We've practically been wasting our whole lives!" Gary wanted to rebut but I refused to let him, "Just imagine! I've known Dawn when she was a new student practically years ago but when I needed a tutor, she pushed me in just a matter of two weeks to get me on track. She may have changed me, but I honestly don't care. I was a mess and she was the one who took me out of that mess-something you two could have never done."

Judging from Gary's expression, I could tell that he was beyond shocked. He was probably thinking of what to say. And then, Gary uttered what I didn't expect to hear, "You like her...don't you?"

I bit my lip in frustration, "That's all you have to say?!" I retorted, popping a vein at Gary's immature behaviour.

"I should have realized this sooner. You like Dawn, Ash." He said, ignoring my comment.

I ignored him and instead headed for the janitor's closet door, but not before he said something, "You know, this always happens when a girl shows up. The guy spends most of his time with the girl and he completely forgets about his friends."

I shook my head in disagreement, "No, Gary, I would never forget you guys," I turned to give him a longing look, "I just wanted to do something right in life for once. I thought that I would have the support of my friends...but I don't." And that was the last comment I left him with before exiting the janitor's closet.

* * *

"And x equals..25." Mrs. Thomspon finished as she turned to us from the chalkboard, facing us. "Any questions?"

"Yeah," Drew said as he raised his hand, "Could you explain that again?" He said and I rolled my eyes while the class chuckled a bit. Mrs Morgan sighed in frustration, fatigued of Drew's antics.

"Drew, you will never change." She shook her head in disapproval and before anyone could say a word, I heard the bell ring. I packed my belongings and was about to exit the classroom when I heard Mrs. Morgan's voice, "Ash, may I speak to you for a few minutes?"

I looked back and said, "Sure. Is there any problem?"

"Problem?" She laughed, "No, there is no problem at all. I just wanted to say that in these past two weeks, your math grades have been improving. I'm quite impressed, Ash. You're sure to pass the class." She said and I smiled satisfactorily.

"That's awesome," I exclaimed in excitement.

"Now just do your best in your final exam, okay?"

"Of course." I nodded, "Thanks, Mrs. Morgan," I smiled.

"Looks like we have a new nerd," I heard Drew spit in my direction, "Like having one wasn't enough!" He said, rolling his eyes.

I was about to retort when Mrs. Morgan said, "You know Drew, you'd better check yourself before you insult others." I smirked in his direction while Drew just puffed his cheek, grabbed his backpack and heading outside, muttering something inaudible. I sighed and headed outside, where I saw Gary and Drew again.

"What do you two want now?" I groaned.

"We want you to come to your senses, Ash. You can't just ditch us for Dawn," Gary started, with a sad expression in his eyes.

"I ditched you guys because-"

"Shut up man, open your eyes! We're your friends," He gestured to him and Gary with a palm, "She's not. That nerd will do nothing for you,"

"Guys, Dawn has actually helped me in just two weeks and we've known each other basically our whole lives! You two have always encouraged me to become a bad influence! It's because of you guys that I was doing bad at school but thanks to Dawn, I've picked up." I continued and their eyes grew the size of dinner plates at what I just said. Despite how much they denied, the three of us knew that was true. I flashbacked to when Gary and I were just five years old and he had persuaded me into stealing some oranges from my neighbor's yard. Gradually, I was involved in their antics and I knew that it was my fault as well for giving in, however I refused to admit in.

"I can't believe this shit!" Drew exclaimed, pumping his right fists.

"And to think we actually were friends with _this_ guy?" Gary exclaimed, "Come on Drew, we don't need this retard." He said, touching Drew's shoulder and walking away from me.

"Yeah, well you can go and fuck yourselves, the both of 'ya!" I exclaimed back and they stopped dead in their tracks. They were practically frozen and Gary turned his head slightly to face me, gritting his teeth. I stood there with a straight face, unfazed by Gary's intimidating stare. Drew was holding back Gary a little, probably knowing this situation wasn't going to end well.

"What did you just say?" He walked forward to me, giving me a death glare. I was fed up of Gary's egoistical attitude.

"You heard right," I said and Gary knitted his eyebrows in anger.

"That's it, Ketchum!" And Gary was about to launch my face with a punch, but was held back by Drew. He was struggling against Drew, "Dammit, Drew, let me go!"

"No! You don't need to do this! We don't need Ash!" Drew told him and soon enough he stopped struggling, but he still had an angered look on his face directed towards me. Once he was calm, Drew slowly let go.

"You're right...we don't need him. Come on, let's go." Gary said as he and Drew walked slowly away from me.

The idea of losing my two best friends was saddening, but I couldn't remain friends with them knowing that it would be no good to me. I had to make a decision and I was satisfied that I chose Dawn. Before I could walk away from sight, I noticed a huge crowd gathered around me, whispering small talks with each other. It was strange; I hadn't noticed the crowd formed until just recently. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dawn. I inhaled a small amount of breath before walking up to her. She had her mouth parted in surprise.

"Uhh...hey," I said, sheepishly, while scratching my auburn hair.

She blinked and a after a few seconds of hesitation, she replied, "Hey."

"...You saw that, didn't you?" I asked to which she slowly nodded her head.

I looked down at my shoes, speechless until she said, "Why did you do that?" She asked, holding a sad expression.

I looked back up at her, "Because you didn't deserve to hear from those jerks. I realized that Gary and Drew weren't really my friends at all. You are and I had to make the right choice."

She shook her head, "Ash, they _are_ your friends. They always have been."

"Not anymore," I continued, "Don't worry about it."

She was about to say something, but based on her hesitation I could determine that she was speechless by my words. Instead, she put a small smile on her face and slowly came forward bringing her arms around my neck to hug me. I raised my eyebrows, surprised at the gesture, but I found myself hugging her back. Her petite body was warm against my skin and I smiled. Before we released, I heard sniffling.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?" I asked in worry.

She dismissed it by waving her hand and then sniffling again, with tears in her eyes as she smiled, "It's tears of joy. No one has ever done anything this nice to me...thank you."

I relaxed my shoulders, chuckling a bit, "You're welcome...nerd." I smirked and she laughed.

"But you should remain friends with Drew and Gary," She protested.

"Dawn, I don't wanna talk about them,"

"Ash-"

"No, Dawn. No." I told her and she let out a deep sigh.

"Fine. However, I still say that-"

"Dawn, no."

"Oh, alright." She said in defeat and I smiled.

* * *

"Ash, I'm going out tonight," My mom said, poking her head in my room.

I was currently in my room, on my desk and table, staring at my Chemistry book, trying to grasp the concepts while looking at Dawn's notes that she had provided me. I had my Chemistry final next week and I had already studied ten concepts regarding Chemistry. I couldn't afford to fail and I was aiming to ace that final.

"Okay," I said without glancing up to my mom, turning a page.

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day my son actually studying for exams. What happened to cheat notes?" She said jokingly as she sat down on my bed.

I looked at her and let loose a chuckle, "No more cheat notes, mom. It's not going to get me anywhere in life. And it's because of Dawn that I've improved my grades." I said. "It's pretty funny, mom. I always used to tease her for being a nerd, but I've realized that she's much more than that. There's so much that people don't know about her. It's kind of sad," I said, glancing at my mom who was sending a small smirk towards my direction.

"What?" I said, cocking my head.

"Honey, are you positive you and Dawn are just friends?" She asked, with that smirk still lingering on her face.

I rolled my eyes, "Of course."

"Because from what I see here, I can tell that you like her." She said and I immediately recalled Gary's words about me liking Dawn earlier. I shook my thoughts away and told myself to forget about Gary.

"Mom, it's not like that. We're just friends." I protested.

"For now,"

"Mom!" I exclaimed in annoyance.

She slightly chuckled at my behaviour, "I'm just messing around with you Ash. Dawn is a great girl and from what I've been noticing, she's been a positive influence on you. I'm so glad that you finally have a friend that put you on the right path." She said.

"Yeah," I said, smiling, "Me too."

Regardless of how much times I wanted to deny it, I couldn't ignore the fact that I was missing Drew and Gary. That was inevitable; we had been best friends since toddlers and it felt peculiar to not hang around them anymore. We hadn't spoken to each other since the predicament or more, we hadn't even spared a glance at each other. Dawn wasn't that spontaneous and thrilling as Gary and Drew, but she wasn't dull and lifeless either. She was just shielded by society's stereotypes.

Was I making a mistake?

Before anything else could occur, the doorbell rang pulling me out of my thought process. My mom quickly walked out from my room and I followed. The door opened and it was none other than Dawn. She had a genuine smile on her face as she spoke, "Good night, Mrs. Ketchum. Is Ash available at this time?"

"I'm right here," I spoke, coming into full view. "What's up?"

"I was just thinking to assist you with your finals. I'm aware that Chemistry is your weakest subject, therefore I was thinking we could emphasize on that area. Is that okay?" She asked and I glanced at my mom, who was smiling at our conversation.

"Sure," I replied, "I'd love that."

"Great!" She chirped.

"Well, you two kids enjoy, I'm leaving now." My mom said as she grabbed her purse, heading for the door.

"Oh, have a good night, Mrs. Ketchum." She smiled towards my mom as she waved.

"You too." She said before closing the door.

Dawn turned her head towards me. She was wearing a plain faded blue top with a grey jacket over the top with a long flowing black skirt. Over her shoulders rested a backpack, probably filled with school supplies. And no doubt, she had her glasses upon her blue eyes. She was plain and ordinary; but yet unique. And I liked that about her. She was her own person.

"Are you ready to commence?" She asked, as she gathered around the dining table.

I nodded, "Yeah, let's do this."

For the next two hours approximately, we were constantly devoured in the Chemistry textbooks and Dawn was explaining different topics to me using various scenarios to make the topics easier to understand. And while I was answering questions, I noticed her writing in that blue notebook again. I remembered the last time I had brought the topic of the notebook, but I didn't want to pry anymore. It was probably a touchy or sensitive subject. I tried to forget about it as I remained engaged in my textbook.

After a half hour, we decided to take a small break and we started to talk again.

"How much siblings do you have?" I asked.

She shook her head, "I have none. Sadly, I'm an only child."

"Woah," I said, surprised, "Me too."

That was one of the many things that we had in common. Similar to me, Dawn didn't have a father as he had left her mother when she was a small girl. I also realized that she had other interests other than just studying, like reading books and listening to music. I wasn't so fascinated by books but I did enjoy music every now and then. Dawn's favourite singer was Adele and Bruno Mars. I couldn't believe that we had so much in common but I was also intrigued.

"Hey can I read that newspaper?" She asked, pointing to a newspaper that had fallen on to the floor.

I shrugged, "Knock yourself out."

"If I knock myself out, how do you expect me to read the newspaper?" She cracked a small smile cheekily and I rolled my eyes as she picked up the newspaper.

"You have got to stop it with those corny jokes," I laughed as she began to read the newspaper. She had a small smile on her face as she flipped the papers. Her eyes slowly widened and the smile had now diminished. She parted her lips in surprise and gasped.

"What's wrong?"

She hesitated before speaking, "Ash...is this newspaper...current?" She spoke, slowly, her voice slightly breaking.

I raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, my mom picks up the newspapers every morning. Why?"

"Umm...it's nothing important." She said, trying to ignore the matter at hand.

"Come on Dawn," I pried, "What's wrong? Show me what's in that newspaper." I commanded and attempted to pry it out of her hands but she took it back.

"It doesn't matter. The past is in the past." She smiled nervously, preventing me to see the newspaper by keeping it behind her back.

I crossed my arms, "Dawn, give the newspaper."

She bit her lip in worry, "Ash...I don't think I should do that."

"Well, I do," I said and before she got a chance to take the newspaper away from me, I quickly grabbed it from her hands behind her back, allowing her to gasp.

"Ash, no!" She exclaimed but I ignored the comment as I was now looking at the newspaper. My eyes skimmed over the paper and I was confused as I wondered what could be wrong. There were just a couple of headlines on some sports and other recreational activities. I skimmed it over again and I widened my eyes in utter shock as I read the headlines.

 _Local Researcher passes away at the age of 75!_

Underneath the headlines laid a picture of Mr. Samuel Oak...Gary's grandfather. I was dumbfounded and soon enough, the newspaper had fallen onto the floor as I remained in shock, standing in a stiff position. I couldn't believe it. The man whom I had known since I was about three years old was actually gone. Gary's grandpa was gone. I slowly stepped back, with my mouth slightly open and sat back in the seat.

"Ash, I'm so sorry." I heard Dawn say, but I was still in shock so I didn't register her words fully. "You must be feeling terrible. And Gary...I can't imagine the amount of suffering that he's facing through right now."

As soon as Gary was uttered from her mouth, I began to recall the memories that Gary and I had growing up with Mr. Oak. Gary had always invited me to his home and we'd play pranks on his grandpa. He'd get a bit annoyed at our immaturity but I knew that he always had enjoyed our playful antics growing up. Then, I recalled how we had drifted apart. And because we had drifted apart, I began to neglect them.

I gritted my teeth and clenched my fist in anger, "This is all your fault."

She looked taken aback a little as she cocked her head slightly to the side, "What?"

I stood up from the seat, facing Dawn who had a confused look on her face, "You heard me! This is all your bloody fault!"

She scrunched her eyebrows in confusion again, "How is this my fault?"

"It's because of you that I've been neglecting my friends!" I started, pointing a finger towards her as her jaw dropped, "And look what happened!"

She stammered a bit, "A-Ash, I-I-"

"They were right! They were absolutely right!" I started again, "Dawn, before I was so carefree and I never ever cared about school. I was always happy with the way I was with Drew and Gary! We did everything together! And now look at me! I'm suddenly starting to change and caring about school: something that I have never done in my high school life! And I ditched them in just two weeks cause of you, Dawn! If I hadn't done that, maybe I could have helped! But no! Why? Because I was busy studying with the nerd!" I finished off and her jaw was still dropping.

She slowly shook her head, "Ash, you have a great misunderstanding. My intention was for never you to change. It was just to simply to improve your grades."

"Yeah, well look at what it's done!" I yelled, pointing to the newspaper that was on the floor. I picked it up, "Gary's grandfather died, Dawn! Do you know the meaning of that? Can you imagine what Gary is going through?!"

"Death is an inevitable process, Ash-"

"Shut up, Dawn! Because of you, I started to care less about my friends."

"I never intended to do that, Ash. And I kept pushing you to remain friends, but you were obstinate about it." She protested and I clenched my fists in anger.

I sighed, "You know what? This was a mistake." I said, refusing to look her in the eyes.

She hesitated before saying, "What was?"

" _This._ It was a mistake to ever consider being friends with you! It's not only messed up my life but Gary's and Drew's as well!"

I could hear her sniffling as she started to cry, but I felt no regret in saying these words, "So this is what I get for assisting you?" She continued crying but I refused to speak to her. "You know what? You're right. This _was_ a mistake!" I turned to her, raising my eyebrow, "I don't deserve this! In fact, I'd rather have no friend at all than to have a lowly, disgusted person as my friend such as yourself." She spat in anger.

I didn't know why, but I found myself getting angrier at her words, "Good. I don't need this! I don't need you!"

"FINE!" She yelled at the top of her voice as she stormed over to the door, slamming it with a loud _BANG!_

I groaned in frustration, putting a palm on my face. I needed to set things straight with the guys.

* * *

The following day at school, I had made a mental plan to make things right with Gary and Drew. I had a lot of time to think the other night and I realized that it was a mistake to break our bond. I hadn't realized that by changing my ways, I pushed the two most important people in my life away from me.

"Gary!" I called out, noticing him in the hallways. He glanced at me, but then turned to the other cheek.

I walked up to him and touched his shoulder, "Gary-"

He pried the hand from off his shoulder, "What do you want, Ash?" He sent me a scowl. I knew he wasn't hurting because of us. He had been hurting because he had lost someone near and dear to him.

Exhaling a small breath, I composed myself and said, "Look, I just want to apologize." I said and Gary sent me a flat look.

"Forget it, Ash. Besides, we obviously don't deserve to be your friends..." He said sarcastically, mocking me.

"You know what, you're right. You can insult me all you want, because I deserve it. Man, I had no idea that hanging out with Dawn would do this to the group. I've been stupid, selfish and a huge jerk. I mean, I pushed you guys away for a girl that I just got to know in two weeks." He stared at me, unfazed at my apologetic speech. "I'm really sorry, man."

It was silent for a while and I was beginning to wonder if I had messed things up to the point where we'd be distant for good. "No, Ash." He suddenly said and I grew curious to what he had to say as he sent me look of sympathy, "I'm sorry." He blinked.

I was taken aback, "You're sorry?" I asked as if he had grown two heads. "For what?"

He took a deep breath and put his hands in his pockets and then looked at me before saying, "Ash, I lost the most important person in my entire life." He started, taking a few shaky breaths and probably trying to hold back tears, "And it's going to be difficult to move on from him. I didn't consider him as only my gramps. He was also my father, mother and my friend. But, it's also opened my eyes, Ash. I realized that I have to stop goofing around because life is...short and I don't want to remember doing nothing in my life other than pulling pranks! It's time to grow up..." He finished off, with a stern expression in his eyes. I put an arm around his shoulder and pressed my lips in a thin line.

"Hey...whatever you do, I'm going to support you." I said and he gave me a small smile.

"Thanks, Ashy boy. Me too," He said and I ignored the smirk that played on his lips.

"Bros?" I asked, showing him my fist.

He chuckled a bit, "Bros." And we fist bumped each other. "And we're sorry for being assholes about you and Dawn. We were stupid."

I chuckled sheepishly, "Yeah...about that..." I said trailing off, remembering our heated argument yesterday, "Dawn and I had a huge fight yesterday." I said and Gary sent me a flat look.

"What happened now?" He asked and before I could reply, the bell had rung for first period.

"I'll tell you later, let's head to class." I said as he nodded and followed behind me.

As I sat down in my seat, I asked Gary next to me, "Where's Drew?"

"He's sick, he didn't show up today." Gary replied.

"Ah," I nodded in understanding.

A few minutes later, more students began piling into the classroom, including Dawn. I couldn't help but to notice how she purposely didn't acknowledge my presence, as she headed for a seat next to the window. I winced silently as I thought how harsh I had been with her the other day. I had put a false assumption on her and it wasn't even her fault. It was mine. And now I probably destroyed our friendship.

"Pssst! Dawn!" I called out but she didn't hear me or was continuing to ignore me, probably the latter. "Dawn!"

"Mr. Ketchum, please pay attention," The teacher said and I groaned in embarrassment.

I nodded, "Yes, ma'am." I said.

The rest of the period had passed, but unfortunately I could barely concentrate because my thoughts were swirling and always going back to Dawn. I had made a big mistake of losing Dawn but now I never want to lose her again. She wasn't the reason that I had drifted our friendship; I was.

"So, why is Dawn upset?" Gary asked me as we sat in second period.

I sighed, "Because I'm an idiot." I said as I slapped my forehead.

"Well, that I know," Gary smirked and the moment I sent him a scowl, the infamous smirk was wiped, "But seriously though, what happened?"

"Well, we got into an argument because when I heard of your grandpa's...death, I accused her for drifting you, me and Drew apart from each other. And then things got even worse so she's been ignoring me." I explained and Gary flinched.

"Ouch," He exclaimed.

"I have to make things right, Gary. She's the best thing that's ever happened to me." I said and Gary began to smile creepily.

I raised an eyebrow, "What?"

Gary rolled his eyes, "Dude, are you stupid? Don't you realize what this means?" He said as he sent me an obvious look.

I cocked my head curiously, remaining clueless as to what he was hinting, "What?"

"It means," Gary started, "that I was right. You _do_ like Dawn." I was about to defend myself when Gary continued, "Don't even try to deny it, Ashy boy. Is there nothing you like about Dawn?"

I scoffed, "Of course. I like a lot of things about Dawn. I like how smart she is," I said, beginning to list the things I like about her at the top of my head.

Gary nodded, "Go on," He said.

"I like how she doesn't care what anyone thinks about her."

"Yes, go on," Gary said, with an amused tone.

"And..." I continued, trailing off, "I like how she looks without glasses, I mean she looks great with them, but without them, she looks...enchanting. She's also kind of clumsy and she tells these extremely corny jokes. And I especially like when we talk to each other on a friendly basis. I get this tingly feeling inside when I'm with her and it's something that I've never felt befo-" I stopped, dead in my tracks as I widened my eyes in realization. I looked at Gary who had a satisfied grin etched upon his cheeks.

"Well, there's my answer," He said cheekily and before I could say anything, the teacher had entered the classroom ready to start the lecture. It was probably going to be difficult to pay close attention though, because my thoughts were lingering around Dawn and my newly discovered feelings for her.

It was a good thing Dawn wasn't in this class.

* * *

"So now let me give you some advice on how you can talk to Dawn about how you feel," Gary started as we lined up in the cafeteria for lunch. This morning I had skipped breakfast, so my stomach was practically grumbling at this point. "I'm a ladies man, so this advice will be golden," He said cheesily, as a smirk began to develop upon his face.

"Okay," I said, beginning to grow curious. "Show me what you got."

Gary began to sport a mischievous grin on his face as he walked up to a random female. I rolled my eyes as he began to pop the collar of his black jacket and fixed his hair a little before saying, "Hey toots. You look kind of familiar...didn't we take a class together? I could've sworn we had chemistry," I chuckled when he began to wiggle his eyebrows suggestively at the girl.

The girl scoffed in reply, "I don't even know you," She said as she flipped her hair.

"We could change that though," He said cheekily and the girl gasped. I flinched in expectation when I heard the girl slap Gary right across the face.

I chuckled when Gary approached me, rubbing his hand across the cheek to soothe the pain, "Considering what just happened, I think I'll do it my way."

"And what way is that?" He asked me as we approached one of the cafeteria tables and set our lunch trays there.

"I'm going to talk to her like a real person and tell her how I feel about her," I said and Gary scoffed in reply.

"No one does that anymore," Gary rolled his eyes.

"Well not everyone uses cheesy pick up lines on girls to tell them how they feel," I reasoned and all Gary did was chuckle as he then began to dig into the mashed potatoes. "I hope that she's not too mad at me," I sighed. Gary put a hand around me.

"Hey don't worry, everything will be fine," He said and I nodded, smiling.

"Thanks, Gary. You're a good friend."

* * *

After devouring a good lunch, I walked up the library where Dawn would most likely be. Not surprisingly, she was seated in there, writing yet again in her blue notebook. As I began to walk nonchalantly to her, I couldn't help but wonder how and why I would fall for a girl like her. However, those thoughts had now begun to contrast as my heartbeat began to accelerate and my nervousness escalated. Never would I have thought that I would have fallen for Dawn Berlitz, the girl labelled the nerd of the school. But it wasn't the 'nerd' that I liked. It was the Dawn underneath the nerd shield what captivated my attention to her.

I expected her to ignore me as usual, but she began to speak, "People can see." She said with a cold expression.

I just ignored her comment and decided to play casual, "What are you doing?" I asked.

She pointed to her blue notebook with her pen, "I'm writing." She said as she glanced at me. I could have sworn her lips lift into a small smile but not before she continued to write in the notebook.

"What do you write in there anyway?" I asked curiously but she sent me a flat look.

"I'm afraid I cannot share that information, because as noted, we are not friends and similar to what you said, I am the reason that you and your friends drifted apart." She said with a hypocritical smile as she then began to drink her apple juice.

I groaned in frustration, "Look, Dawn, I'm sorry." I started but she continued to ignore me. "Look, I'm trying here, alright? Maybe…you inspire me."

She glanced at me with raised eyebrows, "Sounds like bull." She said with a fierce expression in her eye as she closed her book.

I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion, "Which part?"

"All of it." She replied.

"Well, it's not." I protested.

"Prove it," She demanded as she got up from her seat as she began to walk out of the library.

I followed behind her and realized she was heading outside of the school. Quickly descending down the stairs, I called out to her, "Dawn! Dawn!" I yelled, as I began to catch up to her.

"You don't know the first thing about being someone's friend." She started.

"I don't want to be just friends," I said absentmindedly. I had planned to tell Dawn how I felt, but not like this. This wasn't going the way I planned.

"You don't know what you want," She grumbled as she continued to walk. That sentence tugged at my heartstrings. It had a significant meaning to it.

"Neither do you," I said in realization, "Maybe you're just scared that someone wants to be with you," I said and at this point, I realized I was blabbering how I felt about her.

"And why would that scare me?" She asked, turning to face me, but with the same angry expression she had earlier.

I fumbled against my words, "Uhh, I don't know, maybe because of your books or…" I trailed off as she spun against her heel and started to walk away from me. I grabbed her by the shoulders, stopping her.

"You're scared…because you want to be with me too." I said daringly, staring right into her blue eyes that was protected by her glasses. Her eyes grew soft and when she didn't reply…I knew what her answer was.

She released from my grip as she walked away from sight, but leaving me satisfied as well.

Dawn liked me. She was just afraid of admitting it.

* * *

"Any luck?" Gary asked.

Today was the first day of the dreadful week of exams. I was prepared for what was about to come and I had complete confidence in myself that I would ace the finals. Dawn was still ignoring me due to her being stubborn and difficult, so I went the rest of the weekend preparing for my first Chemistry final by myself. I deserved this treatment from Dawn anyhow and I realized that she'll bounce back eventually, now that I knew that Dawn shared the same feelings as I did for her.

"No," I shook my head, "She's still ignoring me...but I know she likes me back."

Gary's eyes grew big, "Really? Nice." He remarked and I rolled my eyes.

"You ready for this?" I asked as the teacher entered the classroom with some stacks of papers.

"Umm, not really. I tried studying, but it was way too much to study." He said. Gary had been committed to his promise. After his grandfather's death, he had to realize the importance of life. So he decided to get a job outside of school to sustain himself. His aunt Vivian had moved in recently to look after Gary, but he realized that he had to grow up to become a more mature, responsible and independent person.

As the papers were being passed, I glanced at Dawn who was sitting beside the window, looking ready for what was about to come. Instinctively, she looked at me. I lifted my lips giving her a small smile and surprisingly, she didn't look away or sent me a scowl but rather, she smiled back. My smile grew bigger, but then she turned away, ignoring me again. I chuckled slightly at the thought of her blushing in embarrassment, but those thoughts faded away when the exam paper was now placed on my desk.

Clicking my pen, I exhaled and began to work on the Chemistry final.

Three hours later, I was exhausted and my hand was practically cramping. I looked around the room to notice only three people remaining, including me. Dawn had already left the classroom fifteen minutes earlier and Gary...he had tried, but he eventually gave up. I handed up my paper and headed out of the classroom.

I noticed Drew walking up to me, "Hey, Drew."

"Hey." He said nonchalantly.

The air was rather thick and the tension between us slowly increased. We hadn't exactly settled the differences between us, "Sooo..." I started, "How was the exam?" I asked.

He shrugged, "I handled it." He said.

I slowly nodded, "Cool."

It was beginning to get really awkward and I tried to think of excuses to make to leave from sight when he started to speak, "Look. Gary told me what's been going on. And...I just wanted to say I'm sorry." He said, with a sympathetic expression in his eyes.

I sighed, "Me too. I would never want to break our friendship."

"Me neither," He added and I slightly chuckled.

"I guess we've all been stupid, huh?" I said and he grinned at my words.

"Yeah, pretty much."

The chuckling ceased and I held up a fist, "Bros?" And he slowly nodded while smiling and then proceeded to fist bump me.

"Bros. Always." He said.

I began to walk into the cafeteria, when Drew yelled, "Hey Ash!" I looked back at him.

"What?"

"Don't forget to get the girl," He winked suggestively and I smiled in amusement.

"Oh, I will."

* * *

I had noticed Dawn walking to the cafeteria earlier, so I figured that I would find her in here. I walked in the cafeteria but stopped in my tracks to what had been happening. I noticed a girl standing in the middle of the cafeteria and she was crying. All of the students were pointing and laughing at her, while the girl was just continuing to cry. A few seconds passed until I recognized the blue hair and realized that it was Dawn. I parted my lips in surprise. The laughter and humiliation was beginning to increase when someone exclaimed, "Ha, ha, the nerd virgin!"

I walked forward to reach out to Dawn, but she practically turned behind me and collapsed into me as she brought out her arms to support my neck. Her breaths were shaky and she was trembling in fear. I broke the hug and looked at her tearful eyes, "It's okay. Don't worry. I'll handle this."

She slowly exhaled and nodded her head. I walked forward to the group, "Alright, what's going on?!"

"Oh Ash," A female voice spoke and from her voice, it sounded familiar, "When will you stop defending Dawn?" I looked at the source of the voice to see Ursula. "She's just being a baby." She smirked as she smiled menacingly at a paper she was holding. I furrowed my eyebrows as I took the paper from her. My eyes widened in shock when I saw Dawn in a bikini and at the top of the picture was labelled "Nerd Virgin."

I crumpled the paper in disgust, "What kind of sick game are you playing, Ursula?" I spat and she just laughed at my words.

"If you remember, I told you that I would get revenge. Well, I'm sorry, but this is just part one of my revenge." She said threateningly. My fingers formed into a fist at the sight of this and I gritted my teeth in anger.

"Paul, I think we should get into our next part for revenge. Maybe we should get Dawn to scoop dog poop from our yard." I heard her say to her boyfriend, Paul. Paul was one of the jocks of the school and he had been in a relationship with Ursula for a good two years.

"Or maybe we could get her to strip in front of the entire school." My blood began boiling as those words escaped Paul's mouth.

"Shut the hell up!" I said, grabbing Paul's collar and giving him a death glare. He didn't seemed fazed one bit and he lifted his lips into a smirk.

"Yeah, I think we could do that," He continued spitefully and soon enough, I couldn't take it anymore, but I was aware of how things could worsen with a fight erupting so I just pushed him back in anger, as he landed on a cafeteria desk. He groaned from pain and I looked back where Dawn was, who had a surprised yet saddened look as I approached her.

I cupped her face with my arms, "You okay?" She slowly exhaled and I continued, "Come on, let's get out of here." I said as I released my hands from her face and grabbed her hand. Her hand was trembling, but it seemed to stop when it lingered with mines.

I eventually brought her out of the school, "Don't worry." I told her, "They're a bunch of animals. You want me to take you home?" I asked and she slowly nodded, not facing me. She was still shook up but I told her soothingly, "Let's go."

* * *

We were currently in my car at the front of Dawn's house. "Are you sure you're okay?" I asked again.

She looked at me and gave me a light smile, "I'm fine. Thank you...for everything."

"No, it's okay, you're welcome," I returned the smile.

She nodded as she began to reach for the door handle. "Dawn, wait!" I said and she turned to me in curiosity. I figured now was the time to make my move, "Would you be willing to...go out with me...Saturday night?" I said, my heartbeat accelerating and my confidence dropping.

She exhaled and began to hesitate. She opened her mouth, about to say something, but she held it back and said nothing.

"What's wrong, Dawn? Haven't you forgiven me?" I asked.

She bit her lip, "I have, Ash. You're a good guy." She said.

I raised my eyebrow, "You...have something else going on?"

"No, no that's not it." She shook her head.

I continued to protest, "Then what is it?"

Out of all the answers I expected, I did not expect this one that uttered from her lips, "I'm not allowed to date." She said, glancing at me. I suddenly felt my throat heavy and my self confidence drop at a greater level.

"Oh."

* * *

 **Yay another long part. But it's not finished yet! So, the last part will be coming soon and hope you enjoyed this one! If you did, leave a review and tell me what you think and even if you didn't like, you can still leave a review.**

 **So I'll see you guys next time.**


	3. Scared

Slowly exhaling a small amount of breath, I walked towards Dawn's house and rang the doorbell, then stepped back, waiting.

Apparently, Dawn's mother was strictly against Dawn having a boyfriend, so she was forbidden to go out on a date with anybody. When I had asked Dawn why, she avoided the matter and told me that it was for some personal reasons.

But I planned to convince Dawn's mom otherwise.

The door opened and it was coincidentally none other than Dawn's mom, Johanna. She had a neutral expression on her face while I politely smiled.

"Afternoon, Ms Berlitz." I greeted.

She remained stiff for a second until she spoke, "Dawn's not here."

I furrowed my eyebrows for a second, until I sheepishly smiled, "Actually, I'm not here for Dawn. I wanted to talk to you." I admitted, although I managed to wonder where Dawn would be.

"Oh?" She said, surprised, "Well, what is it?" She asked as she directed me inside.

I sat down on the couch and didn't hesitate to say what was on my mind, "I really like your daughter and I'd like to take her out, Saturday night."

She didn't even think about it once and immediately replied, "No, I'm afraid that's not possible." She said as she began to read a magazine that was placed on the table.

"With all due respect, I ask you to reconsider," I began, but she interrupted me.

"With all due respect, Mr. Ketchum I made my decision," She said with a stern expression, her eyes glaring at me.

It was silent for a while until she said, "Well…if there's nothing else to be said, you can exit the way you came in here," She said.

I sighed and relaxed my shoulders and composed myself again as I spoke with confidence, "Listen I know I haven't been treating Dawn the way I should have. She deserves more than that."

She eyed me, with curiosity, beginning to take interest in what I was saying so I continued, "I know I hurt her, but all I ask is a little bit of faith from you because I know, even though Dawn doesn't admit it, that she has faith in me."

She placed the magazine back on the table, crossed her arms and looked at me, "You don't know Dawn all that well."

"Which is why I think you should allow Dawn to go out with me. Trust me, the last thing I want to do is hurt her."

She smiled sadly and let out a deep sigh, "She's already hurting, Ash."

And those were the words that penetrated my mind, body and heart almost all week long.

* * *

The next day, I knocked on Dawn's door yet again, but with a huge smile on my face. I was wearing a grey t-shirt covered with a blue buttoned up shirt, that was kept open and some light blue pants. I slightly chuckled to myself, thinking that this was funny in some sort of way. Never would I have thought that I would find myself falling for the nerd of the school.

The door opened and I was instantly mesmerised when Dawn came outside, greeting me with a light smile. She was dressed in a light blue flowing dress that went below her knees that was covered with a pink jacket. Her blue hair was kept loose and fell a bit over her shoulders.

She was beautiful. Everything about her was just beautiful.

"Hey. You look…great," I said and her smile grew bigger.

"You look wonderful too." She said and I chuckled a bit.

There was something missing and I couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was until I glanced at her sparkling blue eyes. I parted my lips in surprise when she wasn't wearing her glasses.

"You're not wearing your glasses." I told her and she nodded.

"Yes, glasses would be inappropriate for tonight, wouldn't it?" She commented. I shook my head in disapproval.

"Dawn, you don't need to change who you are. I like you for you, so go put your glasses back on." I said and her breath stilled for a second, until she just nodded. She retreated into her house for a few seconds until she came out again with the glasses upon her eyes.

"That's better," I smiled as I took her hand in mines, which, as cheesy as it sounded, fit perfectly in mines. As it lingered in mines, I could feel a warm feeling of satisfaction within me as we headed out.

"I can't believe my mom actually agreed to this." She stated as we sat in my car.

I grinned, "Well, that just goes to show that I'm pretty good at convincing people," I winked towards her direction and she laughed heartily. "And thank you for agreeing to go out with me." I said.

She just smiled and looked out the window, looking towards the trees and enjoying the soft breeze that played with her hair. The night was young, the stars were out and it was pretty soothing. The whole ride was pretty much quiet, but not awkward as light music played through the radio.

I parked the car at a local outdoor restaurant. I opened the car door for her and she came out of the car, looking around at the scenery. I could tell, by the look on her face that she was going to enjoy this night.

We gathered around at a table and Dawn was looking around. There were many people-couples, familes and friends eating outdoors and some couples were slow dancing at the more front, where a stage was kept to melodious and romantic music.

And as time passed, I was having the most interesting night with Dawn. As we sat there, eating, we talked and got to know more about each other. I'd make her laugh as I told her about Gary, Drew and me and I would laugh every now and then with her corny jokes.

I really loved her laugh.

I was glad that Dawn forgave me for being an insensitive jerk. Gary, Drew and I had gone back to the way we were. But it seemed as if, we all changed. Gary was staying back every day at school to make up for his grades and so was Drew. It was as if Dawn was here to give us some sort of sign.

Soon enough, we had finished our dinner and the waiter came to grab the dishes. For a while, I could see Dawn glance at the couple slow dancing on the stage up front.

"Would you like to dance, Ash?" She questioned.

I was slightly surprised, "Uhh, sorry, I don't dance." I admitted, sheepishly.

"Me neither, I mean, not usually in front of everybody." She said.

"Well, no, I mean…I don't, at all - as in I can't." I lightly smiled.

"Everybody can dance," She protested, "Come on, you can't be that bad." She said. I sighed, smiling a bit. "Please?"

I looked at her again, "For me?" She pleaded.

And with that, I found myself heading up to the stage alongside Dawn. I didn't exactly know how and what to do, so I stumbled a bit wondering where to put my arms around her. She held one hand with mines and I awkwardly put my hand around her waist.

"Sorry, I told you I was bad at this." I laughed as I stumbled a bit.

"Well, in all fairness, you did warn me." She grinned.

"That's right." She slowly smiled as she looked at me directly in my eyes.

And for the rest of the night, we awkwardly danced with each other, as I held her in my arms and engaged in small talks. I loved holding her like this and I treasured this moment. Her smile gave me warm feelings inside and she was just beautiful.

* * *

Now we were in my car again and Dawn had the assumption that we were heading back to her place, but little did she know that the night was still young and I had something else planned for the night as well.

"Ash, where are we going?" She asked, as she scrunched up her eyebrows in confusion, noticing that we were on a different route.

"You'll see in a bit, I think it's something you'll like." I said, but with a smug smile on my face.

Dawn sighed, "I'm getting impatient." She pouted in a child-like manner and I chuckled a bit.

"Just a few more minutes," I told her.

After about ten minutes or so, I parked the car and opened the door for Dawn, took her hand and led the way a little to the midst of the road. "What are we doing?" She panted as we began running.

"Okay, okay." I halted, as did she, "now put one foot here," I pointed a little to the left and she placed her foot there, "and there," I pointed to the right and she heeded to my words.

"Okay," She said and then looked up at me, "What's going on? You're acting like a crazy person."

"Ok, right now…you're straddling the state line." I said, hinting to where she was standing, but then she just eyed me in confusion. To make it clearer, I pointed to the 'Welcome to Kanto' sign and said, "You're standing in two places at once."

As the words slowly registered in her mind, she grinned silly and laughed as she ran up to hug me. I brought my hands around her, picked her up and spun her around. She continued laughing heartily and then it ceased when I gently put her down.

"Wow, that was really…good." She said, lacking in words.

"What?" I grinned, "No smart comments from the nerd?" I teased.

"Yes. This night has been very special to me, Ash and I'm glad that my mom gave her consent for us to go out on this date. It's been a joyous night so far," She said. I lingered my hand with hers.

"Well, I'm glad that you're enjoying it." I said, bringing up my palm to cup her cheek. My lips formed into a small smile when her cheeks had been dusted with a light pink.

I never knew that having feelings for Dawn could change who I was for the better; I never knew having feelings for someone would feel this amazing. My eyes scanned her entire face until they dropped at her lips.

Unable to control myself and not taking my eyes off of her lips, I started to lean in, but not before noticing Dawn tense a little. Her breathing increased as did mines and our hearts were beating rapidly. We were nose to nose and I was just about to close the distance until she said,

"It's getting late…we should probably head back." She whispered softly, effectively bringing my eyes upon hers. I flickered back at her lips and then her eyes before stepping back a little.

"Yeah. Maybe." I admitted.

After a few more minutes, we were walking up the street that led to Dawn's house. Even though it was currently silent, it was a comfortable silence. The soft wind blew, messing up my auburn hair and I noticed Dawn, up ahead, standing and looking at nothing in particular.

"I love the wind." She started, her blue locks swaying with the wind, "I can't see it…but I can feel it,"

"What do you feel?" I questioned from behind her.

"I feel joy…wonder…beauty…love." She said, slowly, each word having a significant meaning to it. As she stepped back to face me, I realized something.

As I scanned her face again, I realized that those were the exact feelings I had for Dawn and my breath hitched when I realized that I _love_ Dawn.

We stood there in silence again and my heart started beating again. I looked down at her lips, which didn't go unnoticed by Dawn.

"I might kiss you."

Before I could have control on those words, they were out in the open and registered in Dawn's brain, as her eyes slowly widened.

"I might be bad at it," She admitted.

Letting out a small chuckle, I walked forward, "That's not possible." I said and I was impossibly close to her. Contradicting what happened earlier, she closed her eyes as if to give her consent and that told me she wanted this too.

I cupped her cheek with my right hand, our breaths mingling together, as I finally closed the distance between us and kissed her softly. Her lips were soft and she was tense for a little while until she started to relax and then she kissed me back.

We then broke the kiss and I looked at her with passion in my eyes, "Dawn." She brought her head towards me.

The words that were on the tip of my tongue seemed hesitant to come out…to tell her how much she meant to me. But I took a deep breath, licked my lips and I finally said the words, "Dawn…I love you."

As the words were out in the open now, I let out a breath of relief, but I nearly flinched when I saw her tense up again and she was slightly shocked. I looked at her with pleading eyes, begging for her to say something.

"Now…would be the time to say something," I said, sheepishly but my heart was pounding at her lack of response. I was really hoping she would return the words so that I'd know the feelings we shared were mutual.

"I told you not to fall in love with me," She whispered.

I blinked. I was slightly disappointed she didn't return the words, but to tell her that it was too late, I couldn't help but capture her lips again in a deep, searing kiss, to which she returned. I then kissed her forehead.

* * *

"Well, students as you know this week is our last week before summer break." Principal Morgon remarked through the mic, "So report cards will be out this Friday. For those who have failed miserably and I'm guessing some of them would include Gary and Drew," He said and I saw Gary and Drew roll their eyes, "There are summer classes that you can attend this year for those classes that you failed and you can move on to the next grade if you make those grades up. For those of you who passed with flying colours, good job and we hope to see you in the next two months. Enjoy your summer!"

The bell rang, signalling the end of the morning's announcements. I took my bag and headed to my first class: History.

Since final exams had already been done and we were free to do whatever, Gary and Drew talked to me, "Hey man, how was the date last night?" Gary asked, his eyebrows wiggling in suggestion.

"It was fine," I simply replied, shrugging my shoulders.

"You think you can give me some pointers?" Drew asked.

"Oh are you finally going to grow a pair of balls and ask May out?" Gary smirked towards his direction.

"Excuse me, when was the last time you had a girlfriend?" Drew retorted and that seemed to shut Gary up.

"Guys!" I exclaimed and then they looked at me expectantly. I sighed, "Look, if there's anybody you like and you want to tell them that, then just be yourselves. Be good to them and oh yeah, don't ditch then afterwards."

Gary smirked, "Noted. Since when did Ashy boy know a lot about girls?"

I shrugged, "I don't."

"Man, are you whipped." Drew commented.

"Maybe, but so are you." I had a teasing glint in my eyes as Drew blushed just a little, before the two of started chuckling a little.

* * *

As Friday rolled around, I found myself excited for the results. It was a weird feeling and it was something I wasn't exactly used to and I had been familiar with at least one F in my report card. But I couldn't contain my excitement as I walked into the principal's office.

"Morning, Mr. Morgon," I greeted. He was seated behind his desk and he eyed me with a satisfied look in his eye.

"Ah, Ash Ketchum. Are you here for your report card?" He asked.

I nodded, "Yeah."

He smiled, looking for my report card hidden in the stack of papers on his desk and when he pulled it out, he looked towards me and said, "Just so you know…you've improved." He said.

I took the report card in my hands, said my thanks and walked out. Of course, I didn't hesitate once and practically tore it open, eager to see my results. As I scanned across it, a neutral expression remained on my face for a while, until I realized that I had done fairly well. And truth be told, I was proud of myself.

"Ash,"

I looked away from the report card and smiled to see my girlfriend, "Dawn."

"What are your re-" Before she could complete that sentence, I cut her off as I kissed her on the lips. Her lips was soft against mines and I traced one hand at the side of her waist and I could feel her sigh a little. When I pulled back, our breaths were heavy.

She had a stupid yet cute grin plastered on her face, "What was that for, Ash?"

Biting my lip, I grinned as I handed her my report card, "A special thanks for helping me get these grades."

She looked at the report card for a few seconds until she looked at me with a smile, "Astounding, Ash. Two C's, Three B minuses and you managed to get one A."

"All because of you." I said and she smiled.

"This is your results from your hard work. I merely helped you out," She pointed out.

I rolled my eyes, still keeping a smile on my face, "Still. So, are you planning to get a perfect GPA?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "Perhaps. My motive is to just be the best I can be." She stated as she walked towards the office.

"Wait." I said loudly and she turned around giving me a questioning look.

"I'll be at your place tonight and we'll celebrate." I told her, grinning.

"And may I know how you're celebrating?" She smiled.

"Oh, Dawn, Dawn," I said, shaking my head, "You have so much to learn. The fun is in the surprise." I said cheekily and Dawn let out a small laugh and continued to the office.

* * *

"Where are you going, Ash?" My mom asked me as I entered the living room.

I was dressed in a simple plain white-T with some dark jeans and some black shoes. I saw the look on my mom's face and judging from the look, I could tell that she probably had an idea of where I was headed.

"Erm…Dawn's place," I said quietly, but she heard me loud and clear.

"I knew you'd two get together eventually," My mother said with a knowing smirk, "After all, mother knows best."

I rolled my eyes, "Whatever." I said, a bit annoyed at the constant teasing. Now that my mom knew about me and Dawn, she would constantly tease me to no end and she'd always point out that she was right in that we'd end up together. "I'm going now."

I was about to head for the door when an arm on my shoulder stopped me. Looking back, I saw my mom with a genuine smile on her face, "Ash, I just want to tell you that I am so proud of you. You've really become a great person. I'm so happy." She said, her eyes filled with tears now.

I slightly chuckled seeing how emotional my mom had gotten, "Thanks, Mom." She wiped her tears and kissed me on the cheek.

Within about fifteen to twenty minutes, I was at the front of Dawn's place and rang the doorbell. Before I knew it, a minute or two passed and I realized that probably nobody was going to answer. Instead, I reached into my pocket and took out my cell phone to call Dawn. It rang three to four times before it went to voicemail. I called about five times and I was starting to get worried because of the lack of response.

I tried to think what I could do. I thought of coming back later, assuming that no one was here, but as I started to walk back, I noticed a small light flicker on through a window. I hurriedly approached the window and knocked repeatedly, "Dawn! Are you there?"

I heard some shuffling before the blinds opened and I saw Dawn look at me with widened eyes before she opened the window, "Ash!" She exclaimed in shock, "Why are you next to the window?"

I rolled my eyes, "Because I love standing next to the windows at night," I replied, sarcasm dripping at every word, "Now let me in."

"You know there's another option by going through the front door," She stated matter-of-factly, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but this will be fun," I smirked as I tried to hoist myself up, reaching for the window.

"Be careful, Ash!" She said worriedly.

I slightly chuckled, "It'll be fine." I said before I brought myself upright and sat on the window still. One leg was in Dawn's room and one leg was still outside and Dawn looked relieved.

As I was about to bring my other leg in, she came forward and said, "Let me assist you."

I shook my head, "I got it," But because I accidentally pushed myself a little bit too forward, I ended up tumbling against the window still and felt myself falling.

I heard a shriek and that's when I realized that I was on the floor _on top_ of Dawn. She had her eyes clenched shut and she was slightly groaning in pain. "Oh, man, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

She opened her eyes and slightly smiled, "Well, according to my theories, I don't happen to be suffering from any broken bones, so yes I'm alright, minus the pain in my lower back." She said, slowly grinning.

"Sorry.." I said sheepishly, "Maybe I should have used the front door."

She laughed, "Yeah, it would have been beneficial for the both of us." She said and I chuckled at that.

Dawn suddenly became stiff, "Ash…?"

"Yes?" I replied, not taking my eyes off of her.

"Are you going to get off of me?" She questioned hopefully although I do think there was a doubtful glint in her eyes.

"Oh! Right," I said and I started to position myself upwards but not before smirking and said, "But for the record, I liked this position," I said and saw a tinge of pink across Dawn's cheeks. Laughing, I quickly pecked her on the lips before getting up and I offered her a hand for her to get up.

"So is there a valid reason why you climbed into my room as if you were some sort of ninja?" Dawn questioned a bit jokingly.

"Well," I started, "I rang the doorbell a few times like a normal person but nobody answered and I was just standing there like an idiot. And then I called you five times, but you never answered." I said and Dawn looked around as she saw her phone lying on the bedside table.

"Oh!" She exclaimed as she reached for her phone, "Five missed calls. I'm so sorry, Ash, I…I was in the bathroom and my mom is out." She spoke. I could tell that there was a hesitation when she said that.

"The bathroom? You don't sound too sure about that," I stated and she smiled.

"Yes the bathroom, of course!" She stated and I raised an eyebrow, confused.

"Is something wrong? Are you okay?"

She just dismissed it with a wave of the hand, "No need to worry!" She replied a bit too cheerfully and that was when I knew something was wrong.

"Dawn, please, tell me what's wrong! I know there's something wrong!" I exclaimed and she sighed. I walked up to her and caressed her cheek, "Do you not trust me?" I asked softly.

She nodded, "I trust you, Ash. I trust you with all my life."

"Then what's wrong?"

She glanced at me and looked at me in the eyes before replying, "I-Its my report card." She started, "I didn't get all A's."

I looked at her as if she had grown two heads and stepped away from her and sighed deeply, "That's what you're so upset about?" I said incredulously.

"I know it's preposterous but this is very important to me. Receiving these grades are a goal and I'm disappointed in myself for getting an A minus," She said, her head drooping down.

"Dawn," I tilted her head upwards, "It doesn't matter. Besides, you said earlier that you aim for your best. And these grades don't show who you are. I know who you are. You're incredibly smart from what I can tell and no report card should tell you or anyone otherwise." I said, lightly playing with the strands of her blue hair.

She seemed tense for a bit until she said, "So, what's the plan you had in mind?" She said, as if she didn't acknowledge the words I had said a few seconds ago. But I knew she did.

I leaned in and lightly kissed her on the cheek, "Let's go to the movies." I suggested and when I saw her lips curve into a smile, I knew she wouldn't hesitate to agree.

* * *

"So, how'd you like the movie?" I asked as we exited the movie theatre, holding Dawn's hand mines. She didn't respond and I tugged at her hand a little before she looked at me again.

"Huh?" She managed to say.

I lightly chuckled, "I asked you if you liked the movie." I repeated.

"Oh!" She exclaimed and then eyed me, "Yeah. It was eccentric," She said, with a dull or flat expression.

I wondered what was going on. Dawn had been acting strange ever since I came over to her house earlier. Thinking that she was worried about her future, I asked, "You worried about your college applications?"

She shook her head slightly as we began to walk up further to the road. It was around evening time and the stars was shining brightly. I heard Dawn sigh, "I'm not going to college,"

I cocked my head in confusion, "What? With your grades you could get into Harvard," I told her and she suddenly stopped, making me stop in the process.

She turned to me and the way she was looking at me practically spelled out that something was wrong, "Ash…I need to tell you something."

I waited, curving my fingers into fists, waiting, "Go on." I urged her.

She closed her eyes tightly, almost clenching them and then sighed deeply, "I'm sick." She managed to speak.

The fingers in my hand loosened and I let out a sigh a breath of relief. I couldn't believe I was worried for nothing. This girl takes minor details way out of proportion, "Oh, well then let me take you home-"

"No, no, Ash!" She interrupted and she gave me a saddened look. I felt my heart slowly beating and my breath was still, but heavy.

"I'm sick."

My fingers curved into a fist and I felt time stop when she said the following words, "I have leukaemia."

The air suddenly became thick and there was silence-dead silence. I felt my heart nearly stop and suddenly my throat was heavy. I couldn't believe it.

"No…no! You're seventeen..you're perfect!"

"No, no I've been inflicted with it and the treatments are not working," She said, her voice breaking.

I looked away, not being able to look in her eyes for the first time. I looked at nothing in particular and I felt my heart slowly breaking. Clenching my eyes shut, I sighed and then opened them to face Dawn, suddenly with a groping rage, "Why didn't you tell me?!"

She was slightly taken aback when I suddenly yelled, but then she sighed, "The doctors said that I should live life to the best I could and…I didn't want anybody to be worried about me."

"Including me?!" I exclaimed, approaching towards her.

"Especially you!" She said and then her eyes suddenly started to gather tears.

"You-" I started, my voice breaking, "You're telling me that I finally found the girl of my dreams and…there might be a chance that she'll leave…forever?!" The tears that were forming in her eyes now fell down to her cheeks and she sobbed a little.

"You assume this was easy for me?" She said, her bottom lip almost quivering. Our breaths were extremely shaking and I looked at her as if I was going to lose her right there and then. "For a good while, I was content with this and I accepted it, Ash! I accepted this life!"

Then she hesitated before saying the next words, "And then you happened. And now, I have never been so confused in my life!"

"That-That's just not fair," I croaked, "It's like you were leading me on to only dump this on me!" And I realized I was letting out tears while yelling.

"I told you not to fall in love with me," She protested, as she looked anywhere but to me.

"Oh come on!" I exclaimed as I gripped her shoulders, forcing her to look at me, "Who could possibly not fall in love with you? Yeah, I admit I sort of hated you at first but its different now. These past few weeks with you have been the best ever since I began to know the real you."

"This was what I was afraid of. I never wanted anybody to know me-and my secret." She spoke. I lightly pressed my forehead against hers and I knew she was scared. She knew I was scared. We both knew we were scared.

Scared of losing her forever.

* * *

 **You guys are probably mad for leaving the chapter like this, but I wanted to have four chapters instead. Just so you know, Dawn will die in the end and there will not be an alternative ending. …Don't look at me like that, this is a story based on A Walk to Remember and Jamie did die in the end.**

 **Oh and I finally have summer break! Yes! I'm going to be a second year junior college student. OMG where has the time gone?**

 **Anyways, hope you liked this chapter. Leave your thought below. Don't be shy to tell me what I did wrong. After all, I am not perfect and nobody is.**

 **See you next time!**


	4. Goodbye

**Well, this is the last chapter...I wanted to finish this before the end of 2016. Hope you guys enjoy.**

 **Read on!**

* * *

When I reached home, I ran in my room and hopped in my bed, with my face on the pillow. I took deep, shaky breaths and clenched my teeth. My hands gripped the sheets, and I let out an angry puff of breath. I sat upwards and ran a hand through my hair several times in complete worry and fear.

' _I have leukaemia.'_

Without warning, a tear started to flow down my cheek. I reluctantly wiped it away and shook my head several times, thinking that this was a dream. This was all a bad dream and I'd wake up soon.

But this was reality; this was the truth…and it hurt.

"Ash?"

I didn't reply. I didn't think I could anyway, and my mom opened the door. "Ash, what's the matter? I opened the door and you rushed into your room without saying a word!" She exclaimed. I didn't make any eye contact with her.

My mother remained obstinate. "Ash, is there something wrong? You seem awfully disturbed…" she commented. I closed my eyes in slight irritation, only to see images of Dawn, and how much distraught she was in.

Oh, Arceus, when did I turn soft?

"She's…going to leave me," I suddenly said, my voice breaking. I finally made eye contact with my mom only to see her eyes soften. "She's.." I sighed, trailing off. "She has leukaemia, mom. She told me she might not make it," I said, sighing.

When those words were out, my mom pulled me into a warm embrace. "I am so sorry to hear that, Ash." I struggled to return the hug and stood there awkwardly, probably looking like an idiot. "How…how are you taking it?" she managed to ask.

I choked out a laugh. "How am I taking it?" I mocked her words. "Oh, very well you know, I'm on cloud nine hearing that my girlfriend might die and leave me. It's just fantastic to hear that the girl who's made a great impact on me is going to die!" I spat out angrily. She seemed hurt by my words, and I sighed in frustration.

"…Sorry," I muttered and sat down on my revolving chair.

"Honey, you don't need to be sorry," she said and kneeled down to look at me. She caressed my face lovingly. "I know you feel weak and confused, but there might still be a chance for Dawn," she hinted and I shot my head up at her. I raised my eyebrows in realization.

"No!" I exclaimed, standing up. "I'm not taking up on your suggestion!"

"Ash, please. Just leave the past behind-"

"Leave the past behind?!" I exclaimed in disbelief. "Mom, I will never forget what dad did to us and how much he hurt you. I will never forgive him for that," I said, my anger escalating.

"Your father can help, Ash. You know that," she said.

I didn't need his help. "He's not cared about us, mom! He never did. And _please_ do not bring him up again," I warned through gritted teeth.

She remained silent, and then slowly nodded. "…Fine. But you need to do something."

"What?"

She caressed my face again. "Spend time with Dawn. Make whatever time she has left memorable. Make it last for her, Ash. You're the only one who makes her happy, and she needs you."

I blinked. Sighing, I slowly nodded my head and my mom retreated her hand from my face and placed a soft kiss on my forehead before walking out of my room. I closed the door behind me and pressed a finger on my temple in frustration.

She was right. I loved Dawn..and the least I could do was make the memories last.

* * *

It was Saturday morning, and the winds had grown stronger and picked up more speed. Dawn and I hadn't talked to each other since the night before. Of course, I'd try to call her but it would always result in me putting the phone down in fear. I just couldn't muster up the courage to talk to her. All morning, I was dwelling on her while laying in my bed almost all day. Gary and Drew had messaged me a few times, but for some reason, I didn't feel like responding.

To divert my mind, I decided to go outside for a small walk. I ignored the chilly winds that almost pierced my winds and closed my eyes, instead taking in the cool refreshing feeling of the wind, as if it was trying to tell me something. I sighed heavily and then opened my eyes.

I slightly widened my eyes to see Dawn standing across the street. She was wearing a light blue top covered by a very light purple jacket with light blue jeans. I felt my throat swallow as she approached me. Gulping slightly, I rubbed the back of my head.

She wasn't sure what to say. "Um...I'm so sorry...I really should have told you sooner," she said. My eyes softened hearing that. She was apologizing because she knew how hurt I was. But it made me realize that I probably would've done the same if I were in her shoes.

I quickly protested. "I-I made you do too many things, I-"

"No, no. If anything, you kept me healthy longer."

My lips almost quivered. It was just so painful seeing her like this. "...Are you scared?"

She slowly nodded. "To death," she said absentmindedly. I shook my head at her choice of words, and looked to the other direction, unable to face her.

She let out a small sad smile and took a step closer to me. "Lighten up," she said, as if this was not a serious issue.

I looked at her. "It's not funny," I said.

She continued staring at me until her eyes wavered and I saw tears forming in her eyes. She took shaky breaths and we pressed our foreheads together. I relished the deep amount of feelings and emotions that we had for each other. She bit her lip and looked at me again. "I'm scared of not being with you," she said, her voice breaking.

It was unbelievable. She wasn't scared of death; she was scared of losing me. I looked at her tearful eyes. "I'll try my best to make sure that never happens," I said, and hugged her tightly, to give her my word that she would never lose me.

* * *

Sunday morning, I found myself with the guys and Dawn seated beside me. My hand was around her shoulder, and the other hand was pressed against her palm. Drew and Gary were seated on the other couch across from each other. Dawn eyed the three of us, and tried to fake a small smile.

"Come on, don't be so sad...death is an inevitable process, we know that," she said, trying to laugh off the situation. I could practically hear her faking this. I knew she was trying to make me let it go.

"Dawn, you're a lot of things, but you are a really terrible actress," Drew said, and Dawn's eyes widened, and then she set her gaze towards the floor. My hand tightened with hers and she looked towards me before interlocking her fingers together with mines.

"We may have not known you for too long," Gary started, gesturing to him and Drew, "but we've heard enough to know that you're probably the best thing to happen to Ash." He admitted. "In fact, you're probably the best thing to happen to us too." He added with a shrug.

"Yeah," Drew said. "Because of you, we now realize the importance of life, and how...short it really is. And now we're more serious than ever about school and almost everything."

Dawn let out a small smile. "...I'm glad. It's really a shame that we won't get to know each other for a longer while," Dawn managed to say.

It was silent for a while, and I turned towards her. "Dawn...when did you first..." I trailed off, unable to finish my sentence. She pressed her lips into a thin line.

She didn't make eye contact with anyone. "I was ten years old," she spoke so softly that I'm sure the guys couldn't have heard it, but they did. "I noticed myself suffering from weakness and I'd just grow weaker every day. I grew tired for no reason, always ran out of breath and had white pale skin."

"Really rough for a ten year old," Gary commented.

"It worsened over time." Dawn continued. "I had to be hospitalized for several weeks and I was always under various types of treatment. I had to balance out school life and this life, and I made sure no one connected with me. Months passed, then gradually years passed while I was under treatments. It's not until this year that the doctors realized that the treatments were not good enough."

"So you told them to pull the plug on you?" I asked incredulously.

Dawn gave me a saddened look. "It was only a matter of time. It was bound to happen eventually."

"But...there has to be another way. Right?" Gary commented.

Dawn sighed. "Unfortunately, I've been diagnosed with these treatments for almost seven years. Seeing that those treatments were not working, I highly doubt it."

I bit my lip. I didn't want to lose her. The thought of it just scared me. "Arceus, Dawn, I don't want you to go," I said, on the verge of crying vigorously.

"I know," she said, a tear falling from her eye. "I-I'm so sorry," she said, placing her palms in front of her face. It was right then and there where I witnessed Dawn breaking down. I was breaking myself, but I managed to pull her into a hug. She stiffened for a bit before she sobbed loudly on my shirt. I clenched my eyes shut, honestly scared to see her this way.

Gary and Drew were sitting there a bit awkwardly, and after a few seconds, they sat down on the couch and embraced Dawn in a tight hug. It would've been a hilarious sight to see if the atmosphere wasn't so depressing, because we were all awkwardly pressed against each other.

Dawn sniffled, and we broke the hug. She noticed the fallen tears on my cheeks and I proceeded to wipe her cheeks with my palm. Placing a soft kiss on her cheek, I wrapped my arms around her once again, hearing her sighs again. "It's okay...I'm still here for you and I'll always be," I said. She nodded against my shoulder.

When we released, we locked eyes again. Her sparkling dark pool of blue eyes were the only things that kept me sane and in love with her. And as she let out a small smile, I realized that maybe her smile would hold on to me too.

* * *

A week slowly passed by, and the entire week I'd always spend time with Dawn, whether it be going over to her place or her coming over to my place. We'd normally just talk about life in general and regardless of the reality I was going to withstand in the future, I would always attempt to divert my mind towards something else, even if it proved to be difficult.

One day, I found myself laying on the bed of grass underneath the stars, with Dawn beside me. We stayed there for a long, comfortable while, neither of us saying anything and just gazing the stars. I felt Dawn slide closer to me, and I put my arms around her, closing my eyes in the process.

Why couldn't it be like this forever?

Dawn looked up at me. "Hey," she said.

I looked down at her and tried to force a smile. "Hey," I said softly.

The wind swayed and played with her blue luscious locks of hair. I noticed her smooth, creamy skin. It was as if she was never suffering from this sickness at all. "I want to show you something," I said.

Dawn only cocked her head, to which I stood up and gestured her over to the telescope in the other direction. She walked over and looked through the telescope. "Ash, this is wonderful and all, but what exactly am I looking at?" she asked.

"Well," I started, "I remember you saying that you've always wanted to see space, but...considering that's not possible now, I figured, that you know, this would be a close second." I stated sheepishly. She slowly smiled, affected by my words. "And," I added. "I named a star after you," I said, holding up a piece of paper.

She widened her eyes, intrigued and approached me as I handed her the paper. "It's official. It's from the international star registry." I admitted. Dawn gazed heavily at the paper, before looking at me with those loving eyes of hers.

"This is wonderful, Ash," she said, resulting in a cheeky grin. "Thank you."

The next words she uttered were enough to render me speechless.

"I love you."

It was soft, but yet enough to get my heart pumping and my adrenaline running. I stood there awkwardly with a neutral expression, but on the inside I was bursting with happiness. I had wanted to hear those words from her a while back so I knew the feelings I had for her were mutual. She had no idea how elated I was to hear that.

I closed in the distance and kissed her passionately on the lips, to convey to her how much she meant to me and to tell her that I equally loved her back, maybe even more. This kiss was slower, but it still had the passion as any other kisses that we shared. She kissed back just as hard, while placing a hand on my chest, and she groaned slightly when I pulled her closer. We separated, but that only lasted for less than a second before I placed small, light kisses all over her face.

I held her like I was going to lose her right then and there.

And she didn't mind.

And as cold reality hit me again, the tears started flowing like a river. She gasped my name. "Stop...if you continue, I'll start crying again."

"Shit, Dawn," I choked out. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I can't...I can't lose you. I'm really selfish and I don't care. I just want to be able to make you happy and comfort you when you cry. I want for you to able to come to me when you want to tell me something. I want to listen to your cheesy jokes for as long as possible. I want to hear your nerdy self talk even though I probably won't have any idea what you're talking about. I want to do all of that with you." I admitted. Dawn grabbed my face in her hands, and started to wipe my tears.

Her cheeks were smothered with tears as well. "I know. If I could change the reality, I would. You're an amazing person, Ash and if I could, I'd never take the risk of losing you. But, not all stories have happy endings, Ash. In every relationship, there are sacrifices that someone must make, whether big or small."

"It doesn't have to be this way," I said. "We-we could get one of the best doctors and-"

"Ash, that is futile to do. I've been having an extreme case of leukemia for over seven years, and the doctors have tried several treatments...I'm just not curable, Ash."

I bit my lip, and sighed, closing my eyes. I was suddenly afraid to open them. "I'm sorry...I really am," she said, reaching out to hug me. "And even after I'm gone, I know that you'll always have me in my mind," she said. She released and looked at me. "And if you ever want to see me...I'll be up there," she said, pointing up to the night starry sky.

I let out a sad smile, thinking that was all I could do at this moment. I had grown weak for a second or two, but Dawn embraced me once again, hinting the message that she knew I'd pull through eventually.

* * *

It was about after a month when I truly decided to face reality. While life can be cruel at times, it just makes you stronger in the end. I still loved Dawn more than anything, but I knew if I held onto her any longer, it would only give me more pain in the end. Therefore, I accepted the reality. I was willing to let Dawn go...even if it meant losing her.

Dawn's condition worsened day by day; she was so fatigued to even move an inch of her body. She had lost more weight in such a short span amount of time that I was scared. She would constantly sweat uncontrollably despite the cool weather and she bled easily. Tiny red spots were now visible on her skin. All she'd do now was sleep excessively for hours, and she always remained bedridden.

My mother, Dawn's mother and I were both equally saddened to know...that it was going to be her time.

It was sometime on a Thursday afternoon where Dawn fell unconscious. We acted quickly (By 'we', I meant Dawn's mom and I) and through the assistance of the ambulance, she was placed on the stretcher and transported to the local hospital. My heart raced, and I clenched my teeth. Johanna placed a hand on my shoulder comfortingly before I slowly nodded, and we both headed to the hospital.

* * *

It was only after long excruciating hours where I was told I could see Dawn...probably for the last span of time. My hands trembled and I felt weak, but I still managed to push through the door. I took in a deep breath seeing Dawn before me.

She was currently laid on the hospital bed, sound asleep, fragile, and her hair was sprawled onto her shoulders. I took careful steps, and gulped. Reluctantly, I sat down on the bed, staring at her, memorizing all the minor details about her face so it would remain a memory. Tears started forming in my eyes again, and I blinked them, forcing them to go away. Instead, I took her palm to my lips and pressed a soft kiss.

I sat there for a while, and a while turned into hours. Hours turned into days. Dawn's mother would offer to take over every once in a while, but I was too obstinate. I'd just wanted to spend my last moments with her and ignored everything else.

"Hey."

I heard that angelic, soft voice one day, and I opened my eyes, giving her a soft smile. "You're awake. How you feeling?"

"Still weak," she admitted. "But...I'm glad you're here. How long have you been here?"

I shrugged. "I haven't gotten out of this room..." I admitted.

She smiled sadly. "I'm still here," she said, her voice breaking. "Fortunately, you'll still hear my corny jokes." she let out a small laugh.

"I'd love to."

"What do you call a watch on a belt?"

I didn't respond. I didn't think I could.

"A 'waist' of time," she said. I couldn't muster enough courage to pull out a chuckle, but I gave her a light smile.

Facing this reality was a lot harder than I assumed. I just stayed there in a moment of silence; peaceful silence and contentment with Dawn. "Ash?"

I looked at her. "Hmm?" I hummed.

She gave me a longing look. "Please grab my purse that's hanging on the door presently," she said. I looked towards the door handle and did as was told. She then told me to reach into it and pull out what I could find. Scrunching my eyebrows in confusion, I slightly shrugged and to my slight surprise, I found the blue notebook in my hands. Thinking this was a joke, I looked towards her and she nodded her head. "Open it," she said.

I hesitated. "I...I thought you said this was private," I said.

"Just open it. Please?" she pleaded. "And read the first page right now," she said.

I eyed her cryptically but she only urged me to open it. I reluctantly opened the book and started to read. "Love is always patient and kind. It is never jealous. Love is never boastful or conceited. It is never rude or selfish. It does not take offense and is not resentful. Love takes no pleasure in other people's sins but delights in the truth. It is always ready to excuse, to trust, to hope, and to endure whatever comes." She looked at me, urging for me to continue.

"Initially, I didn't think that such a thing like love existed. In a world that was full of hatred and jealousy, how could there be such a thing called love? This emotion, I felt, was only displayed artificially in movies and in books. I didn't accept this emotion. But little did I know that my opinion would gradually change. It was about four months ago, when I first encountered this emotion, and I met someone who truly understood me, who accepted me, and who embraced me. He never gave up on me."

As I said read the words, I found myself speechless. I looked at her, and she reacted by giving me a smile. She urged me to read one last line. "It started in a strange place. It started in detention."

I don't think I had the courage to continue. So I closed the book.

"I want you to keep it," she said. "It's yours."

Those blue eyes pierced me as she said that, and I was truly taken aback. There was no doubt in my mind that Dawn would always be a loving memory. I kissed her for a brief second before pulling back, and our fingers interlocked for the remaining time.

Johanna entered into the room, and I had a strong feeling she was conscious of everything. She only sighed, and sat down on Dawn's bed, caressing her daughter's face lovingly. I honestly wanted to bawl at the entire scene. "I'll miss you, mom," Dawn managed to say.

She choked out a sob. She couldn't reply and instead cried on Dawn's shoulder. I broke down at the scene and tried to look anywhere else. But the vigorous amount of crying only made me grow weaker and weaker.

"Please stop crying. I don't wish for both of you to cry. I don't want memories of both of you sobbing. I love you both...please, mom, give me a smile."

Her mother only continued sobbing.

"Please..."

"You're m-my only child. You expect me to be elated at this point?" She asked, in between sobbing. I walked courageously over to her and placed my hand on her shoulder.

"No more crying, mom. I think it's suffice."

Johanna managed to listen to her daughter's words and control her flow of tears. She wiped them with her palm, but continued sniffling, and smiled sadly. "I will always love you, mom. Thanks for everything," she said. Johanna kissed her forehead, unable to say anything. She walked out of the room, reluctantly, leaving us alone.

She looked at me. "Don't forget me, Ash," she said.

I wanted to laugh at those words. "I never will. I promise," I said.

"You will always be the best thing that's happened to me. And remember, that I'll always be here with you, even after I go."

I laid beside her and held onto her for one last moment, trying to relish the moment. "Thank you...for making me a better person. Thank you for making me happy," I said, as I kissed her temple. She snuggled closer to me and kissed my cheek.

We stayed there for as long as possible, and soon enough we both fell asleep.

But when I woke up...the girl who changed my life was already gone.

* * *

The night was cold. And suddenly depressing.

Placing flowers near the tombstone, I took a step back.

 _Dawn Berlitz. 1998-2015_

 _A loving friend and daughter._

The chilly winds hugged me from behind; almost as if it was telling me something.

I bit my lip. "Hey, Dawn."

I still imagined her flawless face. "It's been over six months. And honestly...nothing has changed. My feelings for you aren't going to change in a lifetime. And you and I both know that." I felt my voice breaking, but I continued. "I just...want to talk to you. I recently graduated out of high school, which is a bit unbelievable because I thought I'd never make it without you. But I did...because I knew that you were still here."

"Gary and Drew managed to graduate as well. And they miss you as well. But you know what? Drew finally grew a pair of balls and asked May out. I don't know if you remember her, but he's really happy. And so is Gary. He met this girl one day at work. I think her name is Misty. They both really changed. And somehow it was because of you."

"I still miss you; a lot. But...I'm pulling through for now," I said, tears flowing down my cheeks. "I hope that one day, I could find someone like you again, but I know that nobody could compare to you. But...I'll try, though. Just for you."

The wind whistled and picked up speed.

"I'll talk to you real soon again. My mom's probably waiting for me."

As I began to leave the graveyard, I almost felt as if someone was trying to embrace me. I turned around, but I didn't see anything. Sighing, I suddenly looked up at the stars. "We'll meet again one day. Count on it."

As I walked forward, I realized that our love was like the wind. I can't see it...but I can feel it.

* * *

 **I hope this was not too cheesy. If it was, then I'm sorry. Remember, I did not want an alternative ending. This story was taken from _A Walk to Remember_ , mostly the movie rather than the book. I altered some scenes and put in a bit of my own ideas. I hoped you guys enjoyed this story, because I really enjoyed writing it.**

 **Thank you guys for reading as always. Reviews are always welcome.**

 **See you next time!**


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